Broken Star
by Rainedonmyparade
Summary: Rachel breaks up with Jesse after deciding she no longer loves him. Jesse reacts in a fit of violent rage. A dark, tragic story that brings a teacher and his student closer together than either of them ever expected. RATED M for sexual violence and content. willxrachel
1. Chapter 1

Hey guys! Okay...this is my first ever attempt at a Glee story so I am really REALLY nervous...

It will be a Will/Rachel pairing...so if you don't like reading these two together than you wont enjoy this!

**Please know that **_this is set during the end of season one...and in my story Jesse St. James **Never** enrolled at McKinley high._

**Also this story will reach some pretty dark places and it is rated a very strong R. It contains adult themes, sex scenes, abuse and bad language. So please if that kind of thing offends you then you might want to stop reading now!**

Okay so I think that's everything you need to know, so please sit back and enjoy!

All rights to Glee belong to **Ryan Murphy** and **Fox**, I'm just playing with them for a little while and I promise to return them back when I'm done! :)**  
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Rachel inhaled a deep breath and looked down at her hands. She knew this wasn't going to be easy. "Jesse, I don't think we should see each other any more," she said, meeting his heated gaze. "I'm sorry but I'm not ready for a serious relationship. I need to devote all my time to Glee and to school and having a boyfriend is only going to drag me behind. If I want to become a world famous Broadway star I cannot afford to date right now. I hope you understand."

Jesse looked at her in shock. She couldn't have been serious! What the hell was wrong with her? Every single girl in the state of Ohio would kill to date someone like him. What gave her the right to decide when their relationship was over?

"What? You can't be serious!" he exclaimed, outraged.

Rachel nodded and inhaled a deep breath. "I am perfectly serious," she replied. "I like you Jesse, but I no longer want to be your girlfriend. I hope you understand."

"Rachel, maybe you need some time to think about this. You are making a very big mistake." His voice remained level, but there was a certain edge to his words that made Rachel uncomfortable.

Rachel pulled her hand free from his grasp. "I'm sorry Jesse, but I don't want to date you any more. I'm not going to change my mind." She inhaled a deep breath and hurried over to open the front door. "You should go now," she said, looking down at her feet. "My dad's are going to be home soon."

Jesse's eyes were filled with unspoken anger and rage. He did not appreciate being told what to do, and he certainly did not appreciate Rachel breaking up with him. He suppressed the urge to grab Rachel and shake some sense into her. He wanted nothing more than to make her suffer for treating him with so much disrespect. Rachel Berry had no right to break up with him. Jesse was not going to let her get away with this.

"You're going to regret this," he told her, slowly making his way over to the door.

"Can you please leave now?" Rachel asked. "I have homework to do."

Jesse glared at her for what seemed like forever, before he finally walked out the door. Rachel watched as he made his way down the porch steps and over to his car. She watched as he unlocked the drivers side door and got inside. It wasn't until he had driven away from her house that Rachel finally let out the breath she had been holding onto.

** -x-x-**

It had been two weeks since Rachel had broken up with Jesse. Thankfully, she had not seen or heard from her ex at all during that time. Part of Rachel was glad she had ended her love affair with the older boy. As much as she enjoyed Jesse's company, she had began to notice that her attraction towards him hadn't been as strong as she once thought it was. She liked Jesse, but she wasn't in love with him. But, there was still a small part of her that wondered if she had made a mistake. After all, Jesse was her perfect match. He was good looking, he could sing very well and he was very smart. Maybe it was wrong of her to end their relationship? Maybe she should have tried harder to love him?

"Rachel?" Mr. Schuester's voice pulled Rachel from her thoughts. "Are you listening to me?"

"Sorry Mr. Schue...what did you say?"

Rachel scolded herself for not paying attention. She shouldn't be thinking about Jesse during Glee club. She straightened herself up in her seat and tried to ignore the looks the other Glee members were casting her way.

"I asked you if you're ready to perform your assignment for this week?" he repeated, looking at his student with confused eyes.

"Of course!" She grinned and jumped up from her seat, eager to sing the Ballad she had been practicing all week.

And just like that, all thoughts of Jesse St. James had completely left her mind.

That was until Mr. Schuester decided to pull Rachel aside after Glee had finished for the day. He waited until the other students had left the room before asking to speak with her. Rachel slowly sat herself back down in her chair and watched as Mr. Schuester closed the choir room door and came to sit beside her.

"Rachel, is everything okay?" he asked, voice soft.

"I'm fine," she answered, instantly. "Why do you ask?"

"Because, I heard that you and Jesse broke up and I wanted to make sure you're doing okay," he paused before adding, "You haven't seemed yourself lately."

"I'm okay. I broke up with Jesse, so there's no reason I should be upset."

"Right." He nodded. "Well if you ever need to talk to someone, you come see me, okay?" Mr. Schue got to his feet and smiled warmly at the young student. "My door is always open if you need someone to talk to."

After saying goodbye to her teacher, Rachel grabbed her backpack and walked out the choir room.

She had just made it to her car, when someone called her name from behind. Rachel spun around to see Finn leaning against his own car. He had been waiting for her.

"Hey Finn!"

"Hey Rachel!" Finn smiled at her."I just wanted to see if you were free tonight." He started to make his way over towards her. "My mom just bought a new TV and...ah...I thought you might like to come and watch a movie with me?" Rachel couldn't help but smile at him. Finn was a great guy and ever since she had started dating Jesse he had been making it very clear to Rachel that he liked her more than a friend.

"Finn, as much as I am flattered by your offer, I am going to have to decline. Jesse and I have only just broken up. I don't think I'm ready to see other people."

Finn smiled and replied, "I just want to hang out with you, Rach. I know your dad's are out of town this week, so I thought you might like some company. Just as friends, I promise."

Rachel pondered that for a moment before replying, "Okay...I guess that sounds good. What time should I come over?"

**-x-x-**

She had a great time at Finn's house and she was thankful for his company. Rachel didn't enjoy being on her own at home while her dad's were away. The house always felt so big and empty when they were gone. So, when Finn asked her if she wanted to stay over and sleep on his couch, she happily agreed.

**-x-x-**

Rachel arrived at school early on Monday morning. She parked her car and hurried to her locker to fetch the books she would need for her first class. She waved to Finn as they passed each other in the hall, and couldn't help but smile at the sight of him. There was something about the young footballer that made her stomach flutter whenever she was near him.

_I'm not ready to date again! _She mentally reminded herself. _Finn is just a friend. Nothing more!_

Rachel's day passed in a blur. She made sure to push all thoughts of Jesse and Finn right out of her head and focus on her work.

Everything was going perfectly fine. That was until school finished and Rachel decided to go to the auditorium to practice the solo she would be performing in the school assembly next week.

She ran through her solo a few times, before deciding it was time to pack up and go home. It wasn't until she had finished packing her things away, that she noticed him watching her. He was leaning against the auditorium door, his heated gaze fixed only on her. His arms were folded over his chest and the look in his eyes made Rachel's blood run cold.

"Jesse?" Rachel turned to face him. "What are you doing here?"

He didn't respond.

Rachel pulled her backpack on over her shoulders. "Is there something you wanted?"

Jesse began to walk towards her, his eyes never leaving Rachel's face. "You know what I want, Rachel," he replied, voice colder than ice.

Rachel really didn't like the direction this was going. A horrible feeling had began to grow in the pit of her stomach. "Jesse, I'm sorry but I really need to go home now." She went to walk past him, but was stopped when his hand reached out and grabbed her arm. "Ouch!" she yelped.

"Rachel, don't turn your back on me," he growled. "I'm not finished with you yet."

Her heart pounded hard inside her chest as she turned back around to face him. "Let me go, Jesse!" Rachel attempted to pull her arm free from his grasp, but it was pointless. His grip was too tight. "You're hurting me! Let me go!"

"I heard you went to Finn's house on Friday!" he said. "Is that why you broke up with me? So you could run off and be with him? Wasn't I good enough for you?"

"No! I'm not with Finn! He's just a friend!"

He scoffed at her words and pulled her body against his. "Don't lie to me Rachel! I loved you! I loved you and you dumped me so you could run off and be with that football playing asshole!"

Hot tears began to prickle behind Rachel's eyes. Jesse was really beginning to scare her. "Jesse can you please let me go? You're scaring me!"

"You made a big mistake dumping me, Rachel Berry," he whispered into her ear.

Rachel screamed and without thinking she pulled her leg back and planted a heavy kick into his shin. It wasn't enough to do any serious damage, but it was enough to make him stagger backwards and give Rachel a chance to try and get away. She turned and started towards the door that lead backstage. She had only taken two steps when her foot caught on something and she fell down onto her knees.

"Rachel, stop trying to get away from me!" Jesse grabbed her by the hair and forced her up onto her feet. "I don't appreciate being kicked and I certainly do not appreciate having to chase after you. Why are you making this so difficult?"

Rachel pulled her hand back and slapped Jesse hard across the face, leaving a red mark on his cheek. "Leave me alone!"

His eyes hardened and before Rachel knew what was happening Jesse threw her onto the floor. Rachel landed on her back and her head hit the ground so hard she knew it was going to leave a lump. She didn't get any time to think about that before Jesse came to stand over her.

"I'm going to make you pay for what you've done to me," Jesse growled, before pulling his leg back and planting a hard kick into Rachel's side. Rachel hissed in pain and instinctively curled her body into a tight ball.

Meanwhile, Mr. Schuester was unlocking his car and climbing into the drivers seat. He was just about to drive out of the school parking lot, when he realised he had left his briefcase back on his desk. Any other time he would have left it and got it tomorrow, but he needed to grade some Spanish papers tonight.

Will sighed, grabbed his keys and quickly got out the car. He waisted no time rushing across the parking lot and back into the now empty school. After making his way to his office and finding his briefcase, he turned to leave.

That was when he heard it.

An ear piercing scream came from down the hallway. Will didn't think before he ran out his office and down the empty corridor. He stopped dead in his tracks only a few seconds later when he saw what was happening inside the auditorium. Jesse St. James was standing over Rachel, yelling at her like she was some kind of animal. Will's whole body went rigid at the sight before him. Rachel was curled up in a ball on the floor, covering her face with both her hands. Her whole body was visibly shaking.

Will bolted down the steps, towards the stage. "What the hell are you doing to her?" he called, anger, panic and concern filling his voice. "Leave her alone!" Jesse spun around to face Will. He had no time to react before Will grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and pushed him against the wall.

To say that Rachel was relieved to see her teacher, was the worlds biggest understatement. Her eyes opened as soon as she heard Mr. Schuester's familiar voice and she watched as Will grabbed Jesse and threw him against the wall.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" he yelled. Rachel had never heard her teacher swear before. Will pulled Jesse off the wall and shoved him back into it again. "Who do you think you are, beating up a girl like that?"

Rachel pulled herself into a sitting position, ignoring the surge of pain that ran down her side from where Jesse had kicked her. "It's okay, Mr. Shue," she said, voice weak. "I'm okay."

Will shook his head and tightened the grip he had on Jesse. "No, Rachel it's not okay. He is not allowed to go around hurting girls like that!" Rachel was surprised by how much anger and hatred was in her teachers voice. "Rachel, I want you to go down to the school office and call the police."

Rachel didn't move. "No, it's fine Mr. Schue. I'm okay. You can let him go now. Jesse's not going to hurt me again."

Will turned his head to look at his student. "Rachel, we can't let him go! Not after the way he treated you! You need to phone the police and you need to tell them what he did to you!"

A single tear fell down Rachel's cheek. She quickly wiped it away. "No. I don't want to tell the police. Jesse's going to go now and he's not going to come back, are you Jesse?" Rachel forced herself to look at her ex.

Jesse's gaze met Rachel's. He glared at her for a long moment before he finally replied, "No. I'm not going to come back."

Another moment passed before Will finally turned his attention back over to Jesse. "You come near her again and I swear you will regret it." Will spun him around and shoved him away. "Now get out of here before I change my mind and call the police!"

Rachel buried her face into the palm of her hands and cried. Mr. Schuester came to kneel beside her. She tried not to flinch when she felt him place his hand on her shoulder. "Rachel, are you okay?" he asked, voice soft and tentative.

She looked up at her teacher. "Thank you Mr. Schue. You can go now if you want to." She wiped her wet eyes on the back of her hands and cleared her throat. "I'll be okay."

"I'm not going anywhere. Not until I know you're going to be alright." He smiled at her and slowly got to his feet. Once he was standing he held his hand out for Rachel to take.

She looked up at him and only hesitated for a second before placing her hand in his and letting him help her up off the floor. She hissed when another shot of pain passed through her side.

"I should take you to the hospital," Will said, noticing her discomfort.

Rachel shook her head. "No. I'm okay. It's just a few bruises, that's all."

He didn't look convinced. "Rachel, you might have a broken rib or something. You need X-rays."

"No. I don't want to go to the hospital."

She went to grab her bag, but Mr. Schuester beat her to it. He scooped it up off the floor and swung it over his shoulder. "Do you want me to call your dad's and have them come pick you up?" he questioned, concerned.

Rachel shook her head. "No, they are out of town until Wednesday."

"I'll take you home then."

Rachel couldn't believe how good her teacher was being to her. "Are you sure, Mr Schue? I don't want to keep you."

"Rachel, you're not keeping me from anything. Now let's go before they lock the doors and we're stuck here all night."

Slowly, they made their way out of the school. Mr Schuester helped Rachel get into the passenger seat of his car, before going around to the drivers side. He started the car and after giving Rachel one last glance, he pulled out of the now empty parking lot. Rachel hardly said a word during the car ride. The only time she spoke was to give Will instructions on how to get to her house.

While he drove Rachel home, Will wondered if it was wrong of him not to take her to the Emergency room to get checked out. Rachel had made it clear to him that she didn't want to be seen by a doctor, but wasn't it Will's responsibility to make sure his student was okay? Maybe he should phone her dad's and get them to come home to be with her?

"Here's my house, Mr Schue." Rachel's voice pulled him from his thoughts. Will turned the car into the driveway Rachel pointed to and parked out the front of a large, double story house.

Will turned the engine off and looked over at Rachel. "How are you feeling?" he asked her.

Rachel smiled at him. "Mr. Schue you don't have to keep asking me that. I'm okay. Really."

Will wanted to believe her, but how could she be okay after what had happened? "Rachel, I think we should talk about what happened this afternoon," he said, looking down at his hands. "You must have something you want to say?"

Rachel shook her head and looked away from her teacher. "I don't really want to talk about it right now."

"Rachel, you know you can talk to me. I want to help you."

"As much as I appreciate your help this afternoon, Mr. Schue, I really don't think there is anything to talk about. It's over now so can we please just drop it and move on?"

"Rachel you were just attacked by someone who had been very close to you. You should talk about what happened."

Will watched as a single tear dropped from Rachel's eye and slowly ran down her cheek. He wasn't sure why, but seeing that tear tore at his heart. He suppressed the urge to lean over and pull Rachel into his arms. No one should ever have to experience what Rachel had been through this afternoon.

"It's my fault," Rachel said. "I shouldn't have dated someone like him."

"Rachel you can't blame yourself for this!" Will turned to face her. "None of this is your fault. Jesse is the one in the wrong. He's the one who hurt you."

Rachel shrugged her shoulders and finally lifted her head to look at her teacher. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying. It was the first time Will had ever seen her look so insecure. "I can't believe I was stupid enough to fall for Jesse. Everyone told me not to date him, but I never listened."

Will reached out and took her hand in his. "Rachel, we all make mistakes. You weren't to know that Jesse was capable of this kind of thing." Will paused while he tried to think of how to phrase his next words. "However, I do think it might be a good idea to go to the police. You should tell them what he did to you."

"No!" Rachel shook her head. "I don't want to tell them what happened. I just want to forget about it and move on."

"But what if he does it again?" he asked her. "What if he hurts someone else?"

Rachel swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat. She looked down at their joined hands and replied, "I don't want to report him. It's over. What's done is done." She pulled her hand free from his and tucked a stray lock of her hair back behind her ear. Will decided not to press her on the subject. Rachel had already been through enough without him telling her what to do.

"Would you mind staying with me for a while?" Rachel asked, after a moment of silence passed between them. "I could do with some company...if you're free?"

He smiled and nodded. "Yeah, sure...if that's what you want."

They both got out the car and made their way over to the front door of the house. Will waited while Rachel unlocked the door and gestured for him to enter. As he walked inside her home, he couldn't help but wonder if it was wrong of him to be here. Rachel was his student and a small voice in the back of his mind was telling him that it was inappropriate for him to be alone with her. But how could he leave her on her own after everything she had been through?

He followed Rachel down the hall and into the kitchen. "Would you like something to drink?" she asked, opening the fridge door. "We have water, juice, soda, or my dad's have beer if you would prefer?"

As much as Will would have appreciated a beer right then, he decided to settle for a glass of water. "Water would be fine, thanks," he replied, while taking off his jacket. Rachel grabbed two glasses out the cupboard and placed them down on the kitchen bench. She filled them both with water and then handed him a glass.

A long moment of awkward silence passed between them both. Will didn't know what to say to the young girl, so he remained quiet, waiting for her to talk.

"Maybe you could help me with my Spanish homework?" she finally asked, breaking the tension. Rachel smiled brightly at her teacher and added, "I could do with some help getting ready for the test next week..."

Will nodded. "Of course. I'd be happy to."

They both went into the living room and sat down on the lounge in front of the coffee table. Rachel pulled her books out of her bag and for the next hour and a half Will helped her with her Spanish. Not that she needed much help. Rachel was already the top of her class, but Will knew that she needed the distraction. He knew she wanted to try and forget what had happened to her earlier.

At six thirty he decided they had done enough studying for the night. "Rachel, maybe we should stop now? It's getting late and you probably want to have dinner or something?" Will closed her text book and turned to look at her.

Rachel shrugged her shoulders. "And I guess you probably want to go home?" Will could hear the disappointment in her voice when she mentioned him going. She obviously didn't like the idea of being left on her own.

"I don't have to go yet." He replied before he could stop himself. That little voice in the back of his mind returned almost instantly, telling him he should definitely be leaving now. He knew it wasn't appropriate to be alone with his student in her home, while her parents were out of town, but he pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind. He couldn't leave her yet.

"Are you sure?" Rachel looked up at him. "You don't have to stay if you don't want to. I understand that you probably have things you have to do..." she drifted off.

Will shook his head and got to his feet. "It's fine, Rach. I want to stay. I have some Spanish assignments to grade, but I can do them here, if that's okay with you?"

"Sounds great, Mr. Schue!"

Will went out to the car to get his briefcase while Rachel made her way upstairs to take a shower and get changed. After he got everything he needed from his car, he went back inside and settled down on the lounge to mark the Spanish papers.

Rachel returned about a half an hour later. Will looked up from his work just in time to see her walk into the living room. She was dressed in a short, satin nightgown. A nightgown which was much too short for her. Will's breath caught in his throat when he realised his student wasn't wearing a bra.

He looked down at his paperwork and instantly scolded himself for having such thoughts. What the hell was wrong with him? He was her teacher! He was not supposed to even think of looking at her breasts! He could get fired for that!

Will quickly shook himself from his thoughts and tried to focus on the papers in front of him.

"Do you like pizza, Mr. Schue?" Rachel asked, while finding her cell phone and coming to sit down next to him.

"Yeah, of course. Pizza sounds great!"

Rachel phoned for the food and while waiting for it to be delivered she switched the TV on and skimmed through the channels, trying to find something good to watch. In the end she settled on an old black and white film. She made herself comfortable on the end of the lounge and pulled a blanket over her lap. They both fell silent while Rachel focused her attention on the movie and Will tried to concentrate on the school work in front of him.

The next couple of hours passed much the same. When they had finished eating their pizza, Will went back to grading papers while Rachel carried on watching TV. Throughout the night, Will couldn't help but notice how quiet his student was. Normally Rachel would be talking non stop for hours, but tonight she had hardly spoken a word. He hated seeing her so upset and he found himself wishing there was something he could do to make everything better for her. He never thought he would admit it, but he was really beginning to miss the old, happy Rachel. The Rachel who fought with him and infuriated him and drove him absolutely insane on a regular basis.

He truly hated Jesse for what he had done to her.

"All done!" Will said, after grading the last paper. He packed everything back into his briefcase and smiled at Rachel.

"So...I guess that means you have to go now?" she said, looking up to meet his eyes.

Will's mind began to scream yet again for him to leave. He knew he should get up, grab his things and walk straight out the front door. It wasn't his job to take care of his students after school hours. But, Rachel wasn't just any student. Her and the rest of the Glee kids were like a family to him. No matter how wrong it might be, he just couldn't walk away and leave her.

"Rachel, maybe we should call your dad's? They should know what happened today and they'll probably want to come home and be here with you."

Rachel shook her head and looked down at her hands. "No, I don't want them to know what happened. They have enough problems to deal with without having to worry about me. Besides, there isn't anything to tell. It's over, so let's just drop it, okay?"

"No, Rachel...it's not okay. You need to talk about what happened and you need your parents here to help you. They should know what Jesse did to you."

Her eyes began to fill with more tears. "Mr. Schue, as much as I appreciate everything you have done for me this afternoon, I would prefer it if we could please talk about something else. I don't want to talk about what Jesse did and I definitely do not want to talk to my dad's about it. If you want to go home now, I completely understand, but please don't phone them. I don't want to see them right now."

Will decided not to press her on the subject. He didn't want to make her even more upset, and to be honest he had no idea what to say that would help make her feel any better, so he decided to change the subject.

"How about we put a movie on?" he asked, getting up from the lounge. He went over to the bookcase next to the TV and began to look through the enormous collection of DVD's Rachel and her fathers had on display.

"Sure!" Rachel sounded pleased with his suggestion. "What do you want to watch?"

"Wizard of Oz!" Will pulled the movie off the shelf and turned it over in his hands. "I haven't seen this one in ages. What do you say?" he looked up at her and smiled.

Rachel returned his smile and nodded. "Okay, sounds great!"

After putting the DVD into the player, Will went back over and sat down next to Rachel to watch the movie. _There is nothing wrong with this, _he told himself. _We're only watching an innocent movie. It's completely fine._

They both fell silent as the movie started. Will made sure to push all the confusing thoughts right out of his head, and for a while he actually managed to get absorbed in the movie.

That was until Rachel made the slightest of movements next to him and her nightgown slipped even higher up her thigh, exposing almost every inch of her skin.

He knew it was wrong to look, but he just couldn't help himself. Will's body flushed with unwanted heat as soon as he took in her now exposed thigh. Rachel's skin looked so soft and smooth, and for a split second he wondered what it would feel like to run his hand across it.

Will quickly pulled his eyes away from his student's leg and scolded himself for having such improper thoughts. He clamped his eyes closed and tried his hardest to ignore the heat that had passed through his body and settled in his groin.

This was wrong. So very wrong. What the fuck was his problem? She was his student! He was her teacher! Rachel had just been through a very traumatic experience and she trusted him to look after her! Will had never felt more guilty. He didn't think before grabbing the blanket and pulling it over her lap. Rachel smiled at him, completely unaware of the not-so-innocent thoughts that had just ran through her teachers mind.

"Are you okay, Mr. Schue?" Rachel asked.

Will cleared his throat and moved awkwardly on the lounge. "I'm fine! I'm just a little thirsty...I think I might go get another glass of water...do you want one?" He didn't wait for a reply, before jumping up off the lounge, grabbing their empty glasses and hurrying out the room.

He made his way down the hall and into the kitchen. After turning the light on, he got the water out the fridge and filled their glasses. He took a large drink from his glass and then refilled it again. His whole body suddenly felt as though it was covered in a thin layer of sweat. Will swallowed the large lump that had formed in his throat and quickly removed the tie from around his neck. He tossed it onto a kitchen chair and inhaled a deep breath, trying to calm himself down.

He looked down at his watch. The movie had only been going for twenty minutes, which meant there was still quite a while to go before he could leave. He groaned and ran a hand across his face and through his hair. Why had he agreed to come here? He should have called her dad's and let them take care of her. What on earth was he thinking?

"Mr. Schuester?" Rachel's voice pulled him from his thoughts. He spun around to see her standing in the doorway, looking at him with confused eyes. "Is everything okay?"

Will forced himself to smile. "I'm fine," he responded, instantly.

Rachel didn't look convinced. She studied him for a long moment before saying, "Are you sure? You look a little...flustered?"

"No, I'm perfectly fine!" He grabbed their glasses and quickly ushered her out of the kitchen. "Come on, let's go watch the the movie!" The sooner they watched the rest of the film, the sooner he could leave.

He made sure to put plenty of distance between them when they took their places on the lounge. Will had another drink of his water and then sat their glasses down on the coffee table in front of them. Rachel picked up the remote control and pressed the play button. She pulled the blanket back over her lap and folded her legs underneath her on the couch.

Will turned his gaze over to the TV. He pushed all thoughts of Rachel right out of his mind and made sure to keep his attention glued on the movie. _You can do this, _he told himself. _When the movie is finished you can go home and try to forget this whole screwed up thing even happened. _

Everything was going well, and for a long while he actually managed to focus almost all of his attention on the film. However, after about an hour his eyes began to grow heavy and he couldn't stop them from closing. He had only planned to shut them for a few minutes, but the next time he opened his eyes the movie had finished and he was now stretched out on his back, taking up most of the lounge.

He tried to sit up, but the small body pressed against his side prevented him from making any kind of movement. He lifted his head and was shocked to see Rachel asleep beside him. Her head was resting on his waist and her arm was draped over his hip. He was suddenly wide awake and very aware of how close Rachel was to him.

He could feel every inch of her warm, satin covered body. He flushed with another rush of warmth and his jeans suddenly felt much tighter. Will's breathing hitched and his heart began to pound heavily inside his chest. He gulped and tried to move, but it only made it worse. As he moved Rachel's hand slipped about two inches closer to his groin.

He closed his eyes and tried to will away the uncomfortable ache that was beginning to grow inside his jeans. He could not believe the situation he had gotten himself into. He was such an idiot! Will tried to think of anything other than Rachel and how tempting her body felt against his, but it seemed nothing could make the bulge in his jeans go away.

This was by far the lowest point in Will's life so far.

He had never felt more ashamed of himself.

Rachel moaned in her sleep and her grip around him tightened. She moved even closer to him, pushing herself against his growing erection. Will groaned and covered his eyes with both his hands. What the fuck was he supposed to do now?

He swallowed his pride and gently shook her, trying to wake her up. "Rachel," he murmured, not wanting to startle her. "Rachel, wake up." After a moment her eyes finally flickered open and she looked up at him in confusion. A look of realization crossed her face when she noticed the position they were both in. Will knew she would be able to feel the pressure in his jeans, which only made the whole thing so much worse.

Rachel quickly sat upright and looked at her teacher with wide eyes. Her cheeks were bright red and her whole body was tense and ready to bolt. Will had never felt so guilty. He watched as his student's gaze moved down to his crutch, taking in the now very obvious bulge in his pants. He didn't think twice before grabbing one of the lounge cushions and placing it over his lap.

"Rachel, I'm so, so sorry." Will's voice came out broken and hoarse. He gulped and pulled himself up into a sitting position. "I didn't mean to...this was a mistake...I should go..."

Rachel continued to look at him. When she didn't say anything, Will decided it would be best if he just got up and left. He needed to get away from her and put some distance between them. Will went to get up off the lounge, but Rachel's voice stopped him in his tracks.

"Don't go." She reached out and grabbed him on the arm.

Will slowly turned his head to look at her. "Rachel, I can't stay here with you. This has been a mistake. I'm sorry."

Rachel shook her head and replied, "Stop apologising." She moved herself closer to him. "You have no reason to be sorry." It was at that moment when Will noticed how dark his student's eyes had become. Her pupils had dilated and she was looking at him in a way that made his whole body flush with unwanted heat. The pressure in his pants only got worse.

"Rachel...what are you..." he cleared his throat. "What are you doing?"

She was so close to him now. He could feel her warm breath on his skin. Her mouth was only inches away from his own. Rachel reached out and placed her hand on the side of his cheek. That voice in the back of his head instantly came back, screaming and yelling at him to put an end to this horrible situation he had somehow found himself in.

"I'm going to kiss you now." Rachel's voice was filled with nothing but heat. Will didn't get a chance to comprehend her words before she had closed the distance between them. Her soft, warm lips landed forcefully on his. Will stiffened in surprise, and then, before he knew what he was doing, he was kissing her back. One of his hands moved up to the back of her head while the other hand reached up to cup her face.

The kiss only lasted a few seconds, before he quickly pulled away, snapping back into reality. He jumped up from the lounge and looked at his student in complete shock. What had he done?

"Rachel I'm sorry...this is wrong...I have to go." He didn't spare her another look, before turning and hurrying out the room. He all but ran down the hallway, eager to get as far away from Rachel as what was possible.

"No! Stop!" Rachel hurried after him. She raced him down the hall and stood between his body and the front door, not letting him pass. "Please...don't go!" Will couldn't help but notice how breathless she was. Her skin was flushed and her lips looked swollen from when she had kissed him.

"Rachel, please...don't do this." He ran a hand through his hair. "This is wrong. I need to go."

Rachel stepped closer to him. "But I want you, Mr. Schue. And I know you want me too."

He shook his head. "No. I can't...this isn't right." He went to walk past her, but Rachel wasn't going to give up that easily. For the second time tonight she threw herself at him. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she planted another heated kiss on his lips. Rachel pushed her body against his and began to grind herself against the aching hardness in his jeans. Will groaned in both pleasure and frustration.

How could something so wrong feel so right?

And for the second time tonight, he kissed her back. His tongue slipped into her warm mouth as his hands ran up her arms, towards her neck. The kiss was heated and sloppy and filled with nothing but unspoken passion and desire. He fisted his hands through her hair, holding her face against his while their tongues fought for dominance against each other.

Finally, he pulled his mouth away from hers, needing to catch his breath. "Rachel, we should stop." She shook her head in response and began to place small, heated kisses over his cheek and down his neck. "You went through a lot today...we shouldn't be doing this...you're not thinking straight."

Rachel pulled her lips away from his throat and looked up to meet her teachers gaze. "Please, Mr. Schue...I need this...I need you." She smiled seductively at him. "And I need you to help me forget what happened today." And then she pulled his head down for another kiss. Her words made him loose the last little bit or restraint he had been holding onto and without thinking he turned her around and pushed her against the wall. His mouth was on hers and he kissed her hard and fast. All thoughts of leaving her flew right out of his mind.

He held her against the wall with one hand, while the other hand slowly moved down over her waist, careful not to hurt her bruises. His fingers played with the hem of her short nightgown as he ground his hardness into her centre. Rachel moaned and pushed herself closer to him.

Rachel's hands moved down from his neck and began to unbutton his shirt. Once the shirt was open, she pulled it off his shoulders and tossed it onto the floor. Her hands moved over his chest, enjoying the feel of his warm skin.

Will pulled back and met her gaze. "Bedroom?" he asked, voice strained.

Rachel nodded. "Upstairs." They resumed their kissing. Will gently picked her up and began to carry her down the hallway, towards the stairs. Rachel wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist. He held her bottom in both his hands, while their mouths remained locked together in a hot, passionate kiss.

It didn't take him long to carry her up to her room. Rachel pointed to her bedroom and he didn't hesitate before pushing the door open and carrying her inside. He gently placed her down in the middle of the small double bed. Will kicked off his shoes and his socks and then climbed over her. He looked down into the eyes of the beautiful woman beneath him, wondering how he had come to be so lucky.

"Are you sure about this Rachel?" he asked. Part of him hoped she would put an end to this madness before it was too late.

Rachel gave him a small smile. She lifted her hand and ran her warm fingers over his cheek. "I've never been more sure of anything in all my life." Her words made his heart swell. "Just please...be gentle with me?"

Will nodded and bent his head down to kiss her soft lips. This time the kiss was much softer and sweeter. His hands moved down over her body, eager to feel every inch of her. His fingers skimmed up her thigh, towards the hem of her nightgown. Will removed his mouth from Rachel's and urged her to sit up, making it much easier for him to pull the gown off of her, leaving Rachel sitting in front of him, almost completely naked. The only thing covering her body was a pair of white cotton panties. His eyes drank in the beautiful sight before him. Rachel blushed and slowly laid back down on the bed.

Another surge of anger passed through Will when he saw the bruise Jesse had left on Rachel's side. A large, black mark covered her skin, reminding Will of what had happened to her only hours ago. His gaze met hers and he was surprised by how much embarrassment he saw behind her beautiful brown eyes.

Will didn't think before bending over and placing a small, heated kiss on the large bruise. He kissed her blemished skin a few times, before slowly moving downwards in the bed. "God Rachel," he murmured. "You're so beautiful." He trailed his mouth over her stomach and down towards her centre.

Rachel pulled herself up onto her elbows so she could see what her teacher was about to do. Will smiled at her, before taking hold of her panties and gently pulling them down her legs, laying gentle kisses over her thighs as he went. When he had them off, he tossed them on the floor and settled himself between Rachel's thighs.

"So beautiful," he repeated, before running a finger over Rachel's wet core, causing her to squirm and groan in pleasure. He smiled and bent down to lick her folds. They both moaned as he began to kiss her in the most pleasurable way possible. Rachel fisted her hands through his hair and began to pant and groan out loud.

Will's tongue seemed to touch all of the right places, and before long Rachel's whole body shook with waves of intense pleasure. Her first ever orgasm hit her out of nowhere. Her body tensed as Will's mouth sent her over the edge into a pleasurable oblivion. She came hard, screaming incoherent words and squirming beneath her teacher. Her back arched up off the mattress and her whole body shook as she experienced her first ever climax.

When she had finally settled down and the stars disappeared from behind her eyes, Will pulled his mouth away from her centre and slowly began to make his way back up the bed. His soft lips trailed kisses over every inch of her body. Rachel stroked his smooth back and made noises of satisfaction. She was still coming down from her orgasm. Her eyes were closed and a look of pure bliss was written all over her face.

Will looked up at her and grinned. "You are so sexy when you come," he said, making her blush. Rachel pulled his head down to hers and kissed him until they were both breathless. She was surprised to taste her own fluids on his tongue.

"Make love to me?" she asked, voice barely a whisper. Rachel didn't wait for a response before she reached down between them and slowly lowered the zipper on his jeans. Will hissed when she brushed her hand against his hard, throbbing member.

"God, Rachel...I want you so much." She smiled, pleased with herself. She began to pull his jeans down over his hips. Will helped her remove them, and after tossing them on the floor he was left wearing nothing but a pair of black cotton boxer shorts. Rachel didn't think before slipping her hand inside the waistband and grasping his hard shaft. It was the first time she had ever touched a man like that. Her warm fingers wrapped themselves firmly around his penis. Will made a noise that sounded a lot like a growl, which made Rachel's stomach flutter in anticipation. She wanted him more than she ever wanted anything else in her life. She needed him inside of her now.

"Will, please...I need you."

It was the first time he had ever heard her address him by his first name. Hearing his name fall from her lips made his cock twitch and his heart race. He found himself wanting to hear her call him that more often.

After removing his boxers and tossing them onto the floor with the rest of his discarded clothes, Will quickly climbed off the bed and went over to grab his jeans off the floor. Rachel watched as he searched through his pockets, found his wallet and pulled out a small, foil packet. Will smiled and quickly climbed back onto the bed. He opened the packet, rolled the condom on, and then settled himself between Rachel's legs so he was positioned at her entrance. He kissed her softly on her lips and leaned back to meet her gaze.

"Are you sure about this?" he asked, giving her another chance to put an end to it before they went too far.

Rachel nodded. "Yes...I'd kill you if you stopped now!"

Will smiled at her and placed a light kiss on the top of her head.

And then he pushed inside.

It wasn't until then he realised just how inexperienced Rachel actually was. Rachel gasped out in pain as he slowly slid the tip of his penis inside her entrance. He instantly went to pull himself out, but Rachel shook her head and grabbed at his back.

"No...don't...just give me a second...okay?"

Will nodded. He remained completely still inside of her, waiting for her to tell him what to do. He had to resist the urge to push all the way in. She felt so good around him. So tight. So warm.

After a moment she began to relax and her grip around him loosened. "Okay...go slow..."

"Are you sure?" he questioned, not wanting to hurt her.

Rachel looked up at him and gave him a small smile. "I'm more than sure."

Slowly, he pushed himself all the way in, pass her barrier. Rachel tensed and grimaced in pain, but it didn't take her long to relax. After a moment he pulled out and slowly began to push back in again. He repeated this a few times and smiled when Rachel started making noises of satisfaction. She bit her bottom lip, closed her eyes and wrapped her legs around his waist. Rachel buried her head into the crock of his neck and moaned loudly with each thrust.

He gained speed. His thrusts grew harder and faster and before long they were both grunting and groaning together. Rachel ran her hands all over his bare, smooth back. She clawed at his skin, wanting more of him, needing to be closer. Nothing seemed to be enough for her.

"So...good..." she gasped out in between moans.

Will grunted. "God, Rachel...you're so tight...so good..." And then he surprised her by gently taking hold of her waist and flipping them over. Rachel yelped in surprise when she realized that they had swapped positions. She looked down at him in shock, not knowing what she was supposed to do now she was the one on top.

Will gave her a reassuring smile. "It's okay...just relax and go slow."

Rachel sat back and was surprised by how good their new position felt for her. She could now feel every inch of him inside her. She placed her hands on his chest and her eyes remained locked with his as she slowly began to move her hips over his. Will smiled, took hold of her hips and helped to direct her movements.

It didn't take her long to get more courage and after only a few minutes she was going faster. Will removed his hands from her hips and began to massage her soft breasts, sending even more ripples of pleasure through Rachel's body, straight down to her core. Rachel gasped and tossed her head back. Her mind was nothing but a swirl of pleasurable bliss. She knew she wouldn't be able to last much longer.

Out of nowhere she was hit with a sudden orgasm so strong it made her scream louder than she ever thought possible. Will quickly turned them back over and hardened his thrusts. It didn't take him long before he found his own release. He came hard, chanting her name as his body shook with pleasure.

Will collapsed over her, making sure to keep his weight off of her sore side. Neither of them said a word as they both lay together, still joined in the most intimate way possible. They were covered in sweat and panting loudly. Rachel's whole body felt sore, but in a good way. Her side was beginning to ache, but she ignored it.

After what seemed like forever, Will finally pulled himself out of her. He quickly removed the condom and tossed it into Rachel's trash can, before falling back onto the bed. He lay on his back, eyes closed, chest rising quickly with each intake of breath. Rachel didn't think before she moved closer to him. She rested her head on his chest and closed her eyes, listening to the sound of his heart pounding beneath his skin. Will wrapped his arm around her shoulders, holding her against him.

He drifted off into a light sleep, leaving Rachel to comprehend what had just happened. She had no idea what to think. Part of her wanted to scream out in pure happiness, but the other part of her wanted to jump out of the bed and run as far away as possible

What did this mean for her and her teacher? Had she just ruined one of the best friendships she had? She couldn't believe she had just had sex with Will Schuester! What did he think of her now? Did he expect to have sex with her again after this? Did he even enjoy having sex with her? Was she even good at it? What if she was really bad? What if Will hadn't enjoyed it as much as she had?

It was at that moment when Rachel decided she needed to use the bathroom. She sighed and slowly untangled herself from Will's grasp. She didn't bother putting any clothes on, he had already seen every inch of her naked anyway. Rachel slowly pulled herself to her feet and began to walk across the room, towards the bathroom. She found it a little difficult to walk, her whole body felt like jell-o and the bruise on her side was really beginning to ache.

After using the toilet, she washed her hands, brushed her teeth and took some Tylenol to help ease her pain. When she had finished in the bathroom, she switched the light off and made her way back to her bedroom. Rachel stood in the doorway for a moment, wondering what she was supposed to do now. Should she climb back into the bed without any clothes on, or should she put her nightgown on first?

After a long moment of hesitation, Rachel inhaled a deep breath and went over to the bed. She pulled the blankets back and slid in beside Will. She turned her back towards him and closed her eyes. The bed moved behind her and she was surprised when Will draped his arm over her waist. He moved his body closer to hers, so he was pressed against her back and after only a few minutes, she drifted off to sleep.

**-x-x-**

Will woke up to a bright sun shining through the bedroom window. His eyes slowly fluttered open and it took him a long moment to remember where he was and what had happened last night.

Last night!

He turned his head to look at the girl beside him. Rachel was dead to the world. Her head was nestled comfortably on his shoulder and her arm was draped over his chest. Will's heart dropped to the very pit of his stomach as all the events from the previous night came flooding through his mind. He instantly felt sick.

What had he done?

He flew out of the bed, grabbed his boxers and jeans off the floor and quickly pulled them on. He zipped his jeans up, pulled his shoes onto his feet and then turned around to look at Rachel.

She looked so peaceful and relaxed. He hadn't really noticed it before, but Rachel Berry was one of the most beautiful women he had ever set eyes on. Everything about her was perfect. Her hair. Her body. Her eyes. Her skin. She even smelled perfect. Will's breath caught in his throat at the sight of her, and for a split second he thought seriously about climbing back into the bed and pulling her back into his arms.

Will quickly shook those thoughts from his mind, turned his back to the sleeping woman and hurried out the room. As much as it pained him to leave her without saying goodbye, he just couldn't stay there any longer. He all but ran down the stairs and through the house. He found his shirt on the floor downstairs and quickly grabbed his briefcase out the living room. Once he had all of his things, he hurried out the front door, closing it behind him as he went.

It was early in the morning. The sun had only just risen in the sky and the rest of the neighbourhood was still yet to awaken for the day. Will sighed, relieved no one was around to see him exit Rachel's house in the same clothes he had worn the previous night. He ran over to his car, unlocked the drivers side door and got in. He didn't think before starting the engine and quickly pulling out the driveway.

As he drove the short distance home, he wondered how he had let everything get so far out of control. Will had just made the worst mistake of his entire life and there was no way he could fix it. He would never be able to forgive himself for what he did. How could he have been so stupid? He had just taken advantage of a young, innocent girl. And not only had he taken advantage of her, he had taken her virginity too.

He was such a fucking idiot!

Will parked his car outside his apartment building and quickly hurried inside. He had just enough time to take a shower and get dressed before he had to be at school.

Rachel woke up feeling stiff and sore. Her head ached, the bruise on her side hurt and her body felt like it had just participated in an Olympic marathon. She opened her eyes to see that the bed beside her was now cold and empty.

He was gone.

His clothes were missing from her bedroom floor and Rachel didn't need to check her driveway to know his car would no longer be parked outside her house. Rachel felt tears prickle behind her eyes. She didn't know what she had expected would happen this morning, but she had at least hoped Will would have spoken to her before he left.

Maybe she had scared him away? Maybe the sex was so bad he couldn't even stand the sight of her? Maybe she did something wrong?

Rachel couldn't help but feel guilty. She felt as though this was all her fault. Mr. Schue had tried to tell her that he didn't want to have sex with her, but Rachel continued to pressure him into it! She even jumped him when he tried to walk out the front door! No wonder he ran off without speaking to her! He probably couldn't even stand the sight of her after what she made him do!

She had taken advantage of her teacher and now he hated her for it.

Rachel looked at the clock on her night stand and quickly jumped out of bed. She had slept in and if she didn't hurry and get ready for school, she was going to be very late.

Once she was dressed, Rachel went downstairs and grabbed her backpack out the living room. She had to move slowly as her body was stiff and she was finding it hard to walk properly. After making sure she had everything she needed, Rachel went to get her car keys out of the kitchen. She had walked to school yesterday, but since she was running late this morning she decided it would be much quicker if she drove.

Almost as soon as she walked into the kitchen something caught her eye. A familiar dark blue tie was draped over the back of one of the kitchen chairs. Will must have taken it off last night and left it here by mistake. She had no time to think about that before she slipped the tie into her bag, grabbed her keys and walked out the front door.

She hurried to get to school in time. After finding a parking space and locking her car, Rachel made her way towards the front entrance of McKinley high. She was late for her first class, but there was something she desperately needed to do before she went into class this morning.

Meanwhile, Will was seated at his desk, staring at the blank wall opposite him. Thankfully he had arrived at work on time and he didn't have a class until second period, which gave him some much needed time to try and clear his head.

Will's mind was a huge, jumbled mess and he felt as though he was drowning in a deep, dark hole of regret and guilt. Over and over he continued to replay the events of the previous night, wondering how he had allowed things to get so far out of control.

He hadn't spoken to Rachel at all since last night. He wondered how she was and he wondered if she would ever be able to forgive him for what he did to her. He wondered if she would report him to the school and have him fired for what he did. He wouldn't blame her if she did. He deserved nothing less.

His office door flew open so fast it snapped Will right out of his thoughts.

Sue Sylvester walked into the room like she owned the place. She folded her arms across her chest and stood in front of Will, looking at him like he was a piece of gum stuck to the bottom of her shoe.

"William. I take it you know why I am here," she said, glancing around the room.

Will was not in the mood to put up with Sue's crap today. He inhaled a deep breath and leaned back in his chair. "What do you want this time, Sue?"

Sue narrowed her eyes, rested her hands on the top of his desk and leaned closer to him so her face was only inches away from his. "Don't play coy with me, you know what this is about. I think you have some serious explaining to do William, because right now I am this close to reporting you to Figgins!"

Will's breath caught in his throat at her words and his eyes widened in shock. How could she know what had happened between him and Rachel? He gulped and looked down at his hands, trying to think of how to respond.

Sue, pleased with herself, picked up on his reaction. "Yes, I'm not that stupid. I knew it was you!" She shook her head and began to pace his office. "How dare you drink from my own personal supply of water! Do you have any idea how much it cost me to have that water shipped all the way from Sweden? That water cost me a fortune and I didn't pay all that money just so you could help yourself to it!"

To say that Will was relieved was a huge understatement. Sue didn't know what had happened last night! Thank god!

"Well I didn't see your name on it," Will replied, shrugging his shoulders.

Sue stopped pacing and turned to glare at him. "You are going to replace that water William, or else I'm going to go out and buy myself a new pair of extra sharp scissors and then I will wait until it's late at night and you are asleep and I will break into your house and cut off that horrible, disgusting hair of yours!" Sue grabbed a small pile of paperwork off Will's desk, dropped it on the floor and quickly stormed out of his office, leaving the door wide open as she went.

Will sighed, rolled his eyes and got up from his seat. He made his way around to the other side of his desk and knelt down to pick the papers up. He had only just bent over, when a quiet knock sounded on his door.

Thinking it was Sue back again, he didn't bother to look up before saying, "Listen Sue, I'll replace your water but can you please just leave me-" his words were interrupted by the sound of someone clearing their throat. He turned his head and was more than shocked to see that it wasn't Sue Sylvester in his office.

It was Rachel.

Today she was dressed in a white polo shirt tucked into a short, dark red skirt that showed off almost all of her beautiful, long legs. Will instantly remembered back to the previous night and how amazing it felt to have those legs wrapped around his waist while he pounded into her tight –

He quickly pushed those thoughts right out of his mind and scolded himself for thinking such things. He grabbed the last sheet of paper off the floor and stood up.

"Rachel...what are you doing here?" he asked, voice broken. "Aren't you supposed to be in class?"

He was not ready to talk to Rachel. Just looking at her made the guilt inside of him come flooding back to the surface. He turned his back to her, went around to the other side of the desk and sat back down in his chair.

Rachel shrugged and looked down at her feet. Will could see apprehension behind her beautiful brown eyes. She moved awkwardly and chewed on her bottom lip. "I wanted to talk to you." Her voice was barely a whisper. "And I wanted to give you this..." Rachel opened her bag and produced the tie he had worn last night. He had completely forgotten about that. She smiled at him and sat it down on the top of his desk.

Will quickly snatched it up and stuffed it into his desk drawer. "Thanks," he replied, voice clipped. "Is there anything else you need?" He knew he sounded like a complete dick. He had no reason to speak to Rachel like that. She hadn't done anything wrong. He was the one who had taken advantage of _her. _He was the one who took _her _virginity. He was the one who had slept with someone almost half his age!

Hurt passed across Rachel's face. Seeing her upset almost broke Will's heart. He hated seeing her sad and he hated knowing he was the reason behind her pain. He craved to go to her. He craved to hold her and tell her everything was going to be okay. He craved to be closer to her, to touch her and to feel her body against his.

But he wouldn't do any of those things. He couldn't touch her ever again.

Last night was a mistake.

He hoped that if he told himself this enough times, he might actually begin to believe it.

Because if Will was going to be completely honest with himself, last night was one of the most amazing nights of his life. Sex with Rachel was good. It was better than good. It was perfect.

Which was exactly why he needed to push her away and try to forget the whole thing even happened.

"I thought that maybe..." she inhaled a deep breath and took a step closer to his desk. "I thought that maybe we could talk about what happened last night?"

"There isn't anything to talk about Rachel, besides I think you need to get to class. You are late and your teacher will be waiting for you." He looked down at his desk, hoping she would take the hint and leave.

She didn't. "But when are we going to discuss what happened between us?"

"Rachel I have things I need to do. We'll talk about this some other time, okay?"

Rachel's eyes met his and for a long moment neither of them said anything. A mixture of emotions passed across his student's face. Rejection. Guilt. Sadness. Anxiety. Regret. Once again, Will suppressed the urge to go to her and comfort her. He wanted to tell her how sorry he was for treating her so badly.

But before he could say or do anything, Rachel turned around and walked straight out of his office, closing the door behind her as she went.

**-x-x-**

**One month later...**

**-x-x-  
**

Rachel sat alone in the empty choir room, waiting for the rest of the Glee club to arrive for practice. It had been a month since she had slept with Mr. Schue, and they were still yet to discuss what happened between them that night. She had so much she wanted to say to her teacher, but every time she tried to talk to him, Mr. Schue would refuse to discuss their night together and he would excuse himself and leave.

Rachel had never felt more guilty. Not only had she seduced her teacher and basically forced him into having sex with her, but she had also ruined one of the best friendships she would ever have.

And it was all her fault.

And maybe Jesse was also partly to blame. After all, if he hadn't attacked her then Rachel would never have needed Mr. Schue to rescue her and they wouldn't have spent the night together and Rachel wouldn't have gotten the chance to seduce her teacher.

Thinking about Jesse made Rachel's pulse race. Her mind instantly began to think back to that horrible day in the auditorium. Rachel had spent a lot of time thinking about that day. Part of her worried that maybe Jesse would come back and attack her again. She kept expecting him to walk around a corner or grab her from behind.

And to make things worse Jesse also occupied her mind while she was asleep. Sometimes he would appear in her dreams and just stand there, watching her with cold, deadly eyes. Other times he would try to chase after her or he would attack her and Rachel would wake up during the night, drenched in a pool of her own sweat, screaming and thrashing around in her bed.

She never told her dad's about Jesse. She didn't tell anyone. Will Schuester was the only other person who knew of what happened, and she planned on keeping it that way. She didn't want people feeling sorry for her and pitying her. Rachel knew that one day it would all pass and she would forget Jesse even existed. One day she would stop having these crazy nightmares and she would be able to carry on with her life.

She just hoped that one day wasn't too far away.

Rachel was pulled from her thoughts when the other students began to arrive for Glee practice.

For the next hour she listened as Mr. Schue and the other students discussed what songs they wanted to perform at regionals. Usually Rachel would have been the first to voice her opinion on what solo's she wanted to sing, but lately her mind had other things to worry about.

Like how to get Mr. Schue to at least acknowledge her presence.

Rachel hated the way her teacher ignored her and the way he acted as though she wasn't even in the room. It was like she no longer existed to him. It was like he couldn't even stand to look at her after what had happened.

Today was going to be different. Today she was going to make him listen to her. Rachel was tired of being ignored by him and she was tired of him trying to avoid talking to her.

When glee practice was over, Rachel quickly got to her feet and made her way over to her teacher. "Mr. Schue, may I please speak with you for a moment?"

She tried not to notice the way his body stiffened at the sound of her voice. "Ah...sure," he replied, nervously. "What can I help you with?"

Rachel waited until all the other students had left the choir room before she went over and closed the door. "Why are you avoiding me?" she asked, getting straight to the point.

"I'm not avoiding you," he replied, instantly.

Rachel rolled her eyes. She sighed and sat herself down on the seat in front of the piano. "Yes you are. You can't stand to be near me after what happened and every time we're in the same room you don't even glance in my direction." She paused and inhaled a deep breath. "Mr. Schue, I understand if you are angry with me after what we did, but please-"

"Angry with you?" he interrupted, outraged. "Rachel why would I be angry with you?"

"Ah, maybe because I forced you into having sex with me?" She turned to look at him, trying to hold back her tears.

Will's eyes widened in surprise. Whatever he had expected her to say that definitely wasn't it. "Rachel, you didn't-"

It was her turn to interrupt him. "No, don't make excuses for me, Mr. Schue. I know I was a complete idiot and I know you'll probably never be able to forgive me for what I made you do." The tears she had been trying to hold back finally surfaced. She quickly looked away and wiped her wet eyes on the back of her hand. "Just please know that I am so, deeply sorry and if I could rewind time and change everything I would!"

Will was speechless. He had absolutely no idea how to respond. So he just stood there, looking at Rachel with wide, confused eyes. He could not believe the words that had just left her mouth.

Finally he managed to find his voice. "Rachel this isn't your fault." Will slowly made his way over to the other side of the piano seat. After a moment of hesitation he sat himself down beside his student. "If anyone is to be blamed for this then that person is me. I'm the one who allowed it to happen. I'm your teacher Rachel. I shouldn't have even thought about touching you."

Rachel turned her head to look at him. "But if I hadn't thrown myself at you and pressured you into it, then you wouldn't have had to touch me at all."

Will sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "That's not the point, Rachel. You had just been through a very traumatic ordeal and you weren't thinking straight. I was supposed to be the responsible adult, but I wasn't. This is all my fault."

Rachel relaxed slightly. "I thought the reason you've been ignoring me lately is because you hate me now," she confessed. "I thought that maybe sex with me was so bad, you couldn't stand to be near me any more."

"What?" Will scoffed at her words. "Rachel I could never hate you." He inhaled a deep, shaky breath and then added, "Especially not now."

Without thinking he reached out and took her hand in his. He ignored the voice in his head that told him not to touch her. He ignored the way his heart raced when his hand clasped hers. He ignored the way his skin tingled at their touch. These things didn't matter. He needed to touch her. It had been a month since he had last been close to her and, as wrong as it was, he had missed her more than he ever wanted to admit.

Rachel looked down at their joined hands. "So...the sex wasn't so bad?" she questioned, blushing a deep shade of red.

The corner of Will's mouth turned up into small smirk. He shook his head and met her gaze. "Of course not!" And without thinking he asked, "Why? Did you think it was bad?" The second the words left his lips he regretted them. He knew he definitely should not be having this kind of conversation with her. Not after everything that had happened and especially not while they were sitting in the middle of school!

Rachel's blush deepened and she quickly looked away from her teacher's gaze. "No. Although it was my first time so technically I can't comment on whether it was good or bad." Rachel finally lifted her eyes to look at him. "But, I enjoyed it and I'm glad my first time was with you."

The guilt Will had been trying to hold back finally resurfaced. He could not believe he had been stupid enough to take this young girls virginity from her. Rachel deserved so much better than that. She deserved so much better than him.

He pulled his hand free from hers and cleared his throat. "Rachel, you know this cannot happen again, don't you?" he asked her. "What we did was a mistake. If anyone finds out what happened I'll loose my job and I'd get in a lot of trouble."

His words hurt her more than he wanted. "You want to forget it even happened?" she questioned.

Of course he didn't. But what other choice did he have? He couldn't be with her. It was illegal and it was wrong and Rachel was much too young. She had her whole life ahead of her. She deserved to follow her dreams. She deserved to find happiness with someone her own age. Someone who would treat her better than he ever could. Someone who could give her everything she wanted.

"No," he replied, honestly. "But I think we should move on and at least act like it didn't happen. I can't give you what you want, Rachel, and we both know we could never be together. What we did last month can never happen again. It was a mistake and I'll never forgive myself for it."

"But it wasn't a mistake!" Rachel snapped. "So what if other people might think it was wrong? We both know it wasn't! It felt right...no, it felt better than right...it felt amazing!" She got to her feet and turned to look at him. "Something that good could never be a mistake!"

"But it was," he argued. "It was all a mistake! I took advantage of you!"

"No you didn't! I'm not a little kid, Will! I can make my own decisions! I wanted to have sex just as much as you did!" she replied, voice filled with anger. "You can't take all the blame!"

Will got to his feet and began to pace the room. He ran a hand across his forehead and inhaled a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. "Rachel you don't know what you're talking about. It was my fault. I am your teacher. I am not allowed to sleep with my students! I should have known better. I do know better!" He sighed and turned to face her. "Which is exactly why this ends now. From now on things between us are going to go back to the way they used to be. We are going to forget all about what happened last week and we will never, ever do anything like that again."

"But I don't want things to go back to how they used to be!" she retorted. "I don't want to forget what happened." Rachel closed the distance between them. She stood in front of her teacher, her body only inches away from his. "I want to do it again. And I know you want to do it too."

He wanted to disagree with her. He wanted to tell her she was wrong and he wanted to turn around and walk straight out the choir room door. He wanted to tell her she was just a child and she didn't understand what she was saying.

But he didn't. He couldn't. Not when her body was so close to his. Not when he could feel her warm breath hitting his neck, sending a rush of warmth throughout his body.

And not when he knew that she was right. He did want her. He wanted her more than he ever thought possible.

Will remembered back to their night together. He remembered how good it felt to be buried deep inside her. He remembered how amazing it felt to hold her in his arms and make love to her. He remembered the sound of her voice as she called out his name. He remembered the way she screamed and moaned and the way her nails dug into his back while he thrust inside of her.

Will's mouth suddenly felt dry and his heart seemed to weigh a tonne. His skin flushed with heat and almost ever ounce of blood in his body began to make its way down south to his crotch.

And then he was kissing her. He took hold of her face in both his hands and pulled her small, warm body against his. A loud moan escaped her throat, before she wrapped her arms around his neck and melted into the embrace. Their tongues met and within seconds they were making out in the middle of the choir room.

Will knew he was making a huge mistake. He knew it was wrong to kiss her. If someone walked into the room they would both be in a lot of trouble. Will would loose his job and he would never be able to teach again. His whole career would be over.

But she felt so perfect in his arms. Kissing her felt right. It felt like he was finally home. Like he had been drowning and he was finally coming up for air. He knew it was wrong, but he just couldn't let her go. He wanted her more than anything else in this world. His body craved to be closer to hers. His heart ached for her in a way that scared him to no end.

Reluctantly, he pulled away and quickly stepped back, needing to put space between them. He shook his head and tried to comprehend what he just did.

"I'm sorry," he said, running two fingers over his lips. "I shouldn't have done that."

"Don't be sorry," she replied, weakly. "You have no reason to be sorry."

"Dammit Rachel! Can't you see how fucked up this is?" He made sure to keep his voice low. "We cannot do this! If we get caught we'll both be in a lot of trouble and I am not risking my career for this!" He gestured between them. "It's not worth it. I'm sorry."

"I disagree," she stated, folding her arms across her chest. "I think it's worth it...and besides no one else has to find out. It can be our secret."

Will was beginning to grow very frustrated. He was tired of this. He was tired of Rachel and the way she needed to constantly argue with him. He was tired of the way his heart raced every time he thought about her. He was tired of the way she occupied almost every single one of his thoughts.

It had to end now.

"No. It's not worth it." His voice was filled with nothing but frustration and anger. He turned his back to her, not wanting to see her face as he pushed the knife all the way in. "You're not worth it. You're just a young, naive teenager. You have no idea what you're talking about. I can't believe you would even think that I would risk my whole career for you." A surge of pain rippled through him with each word. He hated lying to her, but he had no other choice. He had to do this. "I can do so much better than you, Rachel. So move on and forget this whole thing ever happened."

And with that he grabbed his briefcase and walked out the door.

Leaving Rachel with nothing but a broken heart.

* * *

So...there we have it!

Now...I have written another chapter for this and it's almost ready to put up...however I want to see how many people want to read more before I go ahead and add it. I have a few more chapters planned out, but I'll only write them if enough people want to see more of this story...otherwise I'll just leave it as a one shot...

so, if you would like to see more please send me a review so I know there are people out there who want to read it! I really hope there are because I can't wait to write more!

Thanks for reading, big hugs to you all!

xxxx


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys!**

**First of all, a huge thank you for all the amazing reviews you guys left for chapter one! they all made me so happy and I'm so glad you all enjoyed the first chapter.**

**I also want to make it clear that this chapter is rated a very strong M. It contains crude language and mentions of rape and abuse, so if reading those kinds of things makes you feel uncomfortable I suggest you stop reading now.  
**

**Also, if you, or if you know of someone who is a victim of abuse, please seek help. No one should ever have to suffer alone and there are people out there who want to help you. **

**And also just warning you this chapter is A LOT shorter than the first one...I promise the next chapter will be longer, but I've had a pretty horrible week so this was all I could come up with...  
**

**okay I'll stop rambling now...hope this chapter is okay...it's pretty dark and depressing but it will be needed for the rest of the story.  
**

* * *

Rachel felt as though her heart had been ripped out of her chest and then broken into a million pieces.

She watched as Mr. Schuester walked out of the choir room. Once he had left, her legs collapsed and she fell to her knees on the floor. She covered her face with both her hands and sobbed silently to herself.

Why had she been stupid enough to think that Mr. Schue would ever want to be with someone like her? He was right. He was much too good for her. He deserved someone better than she could ever be.

Rachel was just a silly, immature high school girl who was unpopular and not very pretty. Why would someone as handsome and smart as Will Schuester ever even look twice at a girl like her? Mr. Schue could have any woman he wanted. Rachel was stupid to think he would ever want to be with her.

She wasn't sure how long she remained on the floor of the empty choir room, but after what seemed like forever she finally found the strength to pick herself up. Rachel swallowed back another round of tears, pushed the painful thoughts to the back of her mind and slowly made her way out of the now deserted school. She needed to get home before her dad's began to worry.

Rachel walked out the main entrance and across the school grounds, towards her car. She dug her keys out of her bag and went to unlock the drivers side door. That was when she heard the sound of footsteps approaching her from behind. She didn't get a chance to see who it was before someone grabbed her roughly, pulling her body against theirs. Rachel was about to scream but a hand went around her mouth, making it impossible for her to make any kind of noise.

Her attacker had a cloth in his hand and was holding it firmly against her mouth and nose. The material smelled strongly of some kind of chemical. Rachel held her breath, trying her hardest not to breathe it in.

"Hello, Rachel." The sound of Jesse's voice was the last thing Rachel registered, before everything around her went black and she slipped into a deep, dark hole of unconsciousness.

When Rachel woke up, she was sitting in an uncomfortable chair. Her wrists were bound behind her back and her feet were tied firmly to the front legs of the chair. A blindfold covered her eyes and a piece of tape across her mouth prevented her from calling for help.

Part of her prayed this was some kind of horrible, frightening nightmare. She hoped soon she would wake up in her bed and everything would be okay.

Fear and anxiety ripped through her body in waves.

"Glad to see you're finally awake." Rachel stiffened at the sound of Jesse's voice. She heard his footsteps as he slowly made his way towards her. "You've been unconscious for quite some time."

Rachel couldn't control the tears that began to fall down her cheeks. She could taste the horrible flavour of bile in her mouth and could feel nothing but adrenalin and fear pumping through her veins.

Jesse came to stand behind her. She could feel his breath on the back of her neck. Then, just to make her feel even worse, he leaned down and placed a kiss on the skin below her ear. Rachel shuddered at his touch and tried her best to ignore the nausea that had settled in her stomach. He ran his hand lightly over her neck, before finally pulling the blindfold off of her eyes.

It took Rachel a few seconds to adjust to the lighting in the room, but after a moment she was finally able to see where he had taken her.

The room was dark. The only light came from a dim lamp that hung on the wall over on the left side of the room. She was sitting in the middle of some kind of warehouse. It was dusty and empty and looked like it hadn't been used in quite some time. There was a table beside the lamp with a seat pushed underneath it. On top of the table was her backpack and a black leather overnight bag. These were the only things that filled the dark, empty room.

"No one will be able to find us here," Jesse said, sounding pleased with himself. "This warehouse closed down three years ago, so nobody has a reason to come here any more." He smiled at her. "Which means we wont be interrupted."

Rachel's fear increased. She swallowed back more tears and pulled her eyes away from Jesse's face. What was she supposed to do now? How was she going to get out of here? Why was he doing this? What did he want from her?

Jesse kneeled down in front of Rachel's knees. He took hold of her chin in his hand and lifted her head, forcing her to look at him. "You made a big mistake, Rachel Berry. You should never have broken up with me."

She couldn't control the loud sob that escaped her throat. Rachel pulled her head away from his grip and closed her eyes tightly.

"You're scared," he stated. An evil smile crept across his face. "Good...you should be scared." Jesse took hold of the tape and ripped it off her mouth, causing Rachel to wince in pain. "You are going to pay for what you did to me."

"Please...let me go!" Rachel's throat was dry and she was in desperate need of a drink, but she ignored her thirst. That was the least of her worries right now.

Jesse smiled and reached out to run his fingers over her cheek. Rachel pulled her head away, not wanting him to touch her. "I'm sorry, but I can't let you go. You have to pay the price for what you put me through."

His words made her heart race and her eyes brim with more tears. "What are you going to do?" Rachel asked, voice broken.

Jesse sighed dramatically and stood up to his full height. "Don't worry. You'll find out soon enough."

"Why are you doing this?" Another loud sob escaped her throat.

"Because you need to learn a lesson," he replied, turning his back to her. Jesse folded his arms behind his back and began to pace the large, empty room. "You shouldn't have broken up with me. I loved you, Rachel! I loved you and you broke my heart!" He stopped his pacing and turned to look at her. "I didn't want to do this, but you gave me no other choice. You asked for this. This is all your fault."

Rachel looked up to meet his gaze. Her breath caught when she saw how much anger and hatred was behind his dark eyes. The look on his face sent ripples of anxiety straight through her body. The hairs on the back of her neck stood at attention and her whole body suddenly felt about ten degrees colder.

She shook her head and swallowed the large, dry lump in her throat. "You wont get away with this," she stated. "Mr. Schuester knows what you did to me and he'll tell the police and he'll find me!" Rachel wasn't even sure if she believed her words. She was pretty sure Mr. Schuester hated her now and he'd be more than happy if she disappeared forever. But she tried not to think about that too much.

Jesse chuckled and shook his head. He went over to the other side of the room, grabbed the spare chair and carried it over to where Rachel was sitting. After placing it down in front of her, he took a seat. "I don't think I need to worry about Mr. Schuester," he stated. "I highly doubt that teacher will be able to find you here."

Rachel had never felt more frightened in all her life.

Jesse leaned back in his seat and folded his arms across his chest. "I know you had sex with him, Rachel," he stated, bluntly.

Rachel's whole body stiffened as hot tears began to make their way down her cold cheeks. "You don't know what you're talking about!"

"I know exactly what I'm talking about," he replied."I saw Schuester take you back to your house after our little disagreement in the auditorium that day, and I know he spent the night with you." Jesse's eyes hardened. "You had sex with him, didn't you?"

Rachel shook her head. "No!"

Jesse got to his feet and before Rachel knew what was happening, he pulled his hand back and planted a hard slap across her cheek. Rachel's head flew back and a loud yelp escaped her lips.

"Don't lie to me!" he growled. "I saw him go to your house and I know he spent the night there!"

More tears fell down her cheeks in waves. Rachel closed her eyes and silently prayed for someone to come and save her.

"I bet you begged him for it," Jesse went on. "I bet you begged for him to fuck you! I bet you were all over him like a cat on heat." And then, to Rachel's disgust, Jesse ran his hand up her thigh, towards the hem of her skirt. "Did you enjoy it, Rachel?" he asked, running his fingers over her skin.

"Don't touch me!" she yelled.

Jesse's hand continued to make its way up the inside of her thigh. Rachel's body stiffened at his touch. She tried to pull herself away from him, but it was no use.

"You always refused to have sex with me," he stated, voice quiet and calm. "Whenever I wanted to do it, you'd always come up with an excuse and tell me you weren't ready." Jesse's hand came in contact with the fabric of Rachel's panties, causing her stomach to coil with hatred. "But the second you're alone with Schuester you are more than happy to let him screw you!"

"Get away from me!" she snapped, tears running down her cheeks. "Get your hand off me!"A small, deadly smile crept across his lips. Jesse made no effort to remove his hand. Rachel pulled at the ropes around her wrists, trying to free herself. "Leave me alone!"

Jesse moved even closer to her so his body was touching hers. "You can't refuse me any more, Rachel," he whispered into her ear. "And you can't run from me now."

Rachel's breathing hitched and a loud, frightened scream escaped her lips. She yelled out for help as she began to thrash around in the uncomfortable chair.

"Shhh," he murmured. Rachel's stomach tightened as he leaned closer to her and planted a kiss on the side of her cheek. "The less you struggle, the less this will hurt."

"GET AWAY FROM ME!" she screamed.

Jesse finally pulled his hand away from her and got to his feet. Rachel watched as he made his way over to the other side of the room, grabbed the leather bag off the top of the table and carried it back to where she was seated. He smiled at her, before placing the bag on the floor and kneeling down to open it.

Jesse searched through the bag for only a second before he found what he was looking for. He pulled a black handgun out and placed it down on the floor beside his knee. Rachel's heart all but stopped and her eyes widened in both shock and horror when she saw the weapon.

"What...what are you doing?" she asked, blinking back more tears.

Jesse grabbed some more tape out the bag, before closing it and pushing it out the way. He picked the handgun up off the floor and got to his feet. After making sure the gun was loaded, he turned his attention over to Rachel.

"I'll use this if I have to." He gestured to the gun in his hand. "Do you understand?" Rachel gulped and slowly nodded her head. Jesse smiled and kneeled down to undo the ropes from around her feet. Once her feet were free, he got up and went around to untie her hands.

"Stand up," he ordered, pressing the gun into her back.

Rachel didn't hesitate before quickly getting to her feet.

He pressed the gun harder against her spine. "You are going to enjoy this," he whispered in her ear. "I'm going to make you wish you never even thought to leave me."

Jesse ran his hand up Rachel's arm, making Rachel flinch with disgust.

"Please," she begged, voice filled with desperation. "Please, let me go!" Her body convulsed as she sobbed. "Leave me alone!"

Jesse shook his head and moved his hand up her arm and across the base of her neck. He lifted her hair out of the way and placed his lips against her skin. "Get down on your knees," he ordered, pushing the gun harder against her back.

Rachel fell onto the floor, her knees landing hard on the concrete. Jesse walked around to stand in front of her. He looked down at her like she was some kind of animal. His dark eyes filled with nothing but excitement.

"You are going to do everything I tell you to do. Is that clear?" He raised the gun and pointed it directly at her.

Rachel felt nothing but terror rush through her. She held back another sob and slowly nodded her head.

"Good girl." He looked pleased. To Rachel's horror Jesse slowly began to undo his belt. Rachel closed her eyes and tried to will herself to wake up from this horrible nightmare. "Remove your underwear," he instructed, while pulling off his belt and tossing it onto the floor.

Rachel shook her head and closed her eyes even tighter. She wouldn't do it. She wouldn't give in to him. She wouldn't give herself up so easily.

Rachel yelped in pain as Jesse pulled his arm back and hit her hard over the head with the gun. Her whole body fell backwards and she landed on her back on the cold, hard floor. She could feel warm fluid pooling on the top of her forehead where the gun had made contact with her skin. Blood slowly began to drip down the side of her face and onto the floor.

"Remove your underwear, Rachel," he repeated.

Rachel made no effort to move. She closed her eyes and tried her hardest to ignore him.

"You are only making this harder for yourself."

She didn't respond.

Jesse growled in frustration, before kneeling over her on the floor. Rachel stiffened as he grabbed her and pulled her body against his. She could feel the excitement in his jeans, which only added to her terror. Bile began to rise in her throat and it was everything she had in her power not to throw up.

Jesse grabbed her panties and began to pull them off her legs. "You deserve this," he told her, tossing her underwear onto the floor. Rachel held back another round of tears. Her eyes remained tightly closed as Jesse began to undo the buttons on her blouse. "Tell me you deserve this," Jesse ordered, pulling off her shirt. "Tell me you want me."

Rachel's lips remained closed. She wouldn't say it. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction he wanted.

Jesse growled in frustration. He held the gun against the side of her head. "Tell me you want this!" he commanded, voice filled with anger.

Rachel would rather he pulled the trigger than say those words.

Jesse planted a hard smack against Rachel's right cheek. She hissed in pain.

"Tell me you want this," he repeated, pressing the gun harder against her temple.

"No!" She shook her head.

He kneed her hard in the ribs. Rachel winced as a sharp stab of pain passed through her chest. She didn't need X-rays to know he had broken at least one of her ribs.

"Stop fighting, Rachel," he murmured. "You wont win."

She struggled to breathe. The pain in her chest made it almost impossible to make any kind of movement. "Please...don't do this!" She sobbed. "Let me go!"

He lifted the gun and aimed it directly at the spot between her eyes. "You want me, don't you Rachel?" he asked, a deadly smile playing along his lips. To her horror, Jesse began to undo the zip on his jeans. "Tell me you want me and I wont shoot you."

Rachel's sobs grew louder as Jesse's finger began to play with the trigger on the gun. Her breathing hitched and she knew Jesse wouldn't hesitate to kill her if she didn't do what he wanted.

She knew her only chance of surviving was to tell him what he wanted to hear.

If she wanted to survive, she would have to say the words.

"Yes...yes I want you." She forced the words out of her mouth as another round of tears fell down her cheeks.

A huge grin spread across his face, before he positioned himself between her legs. He held her arms above her head, while his body pinned her to the ground. Her loud, frightened sobs were silenced when his mouth landed forcefully on hers.

Rachel knew, without a doubt, that William Schuester wouldn't be coming to save her this time.

-x-x-x-

After Jesse had finished having his way with her, Rachel curled up on the cold, concrete floor, trying to remain concious and alert. She tried her hardest not to think about what had just happened to her and the fact that she had just been abused in the most horrible way possible.

Jesse got to his feet and began to pull his clothes on. "Rachel, I am sorry things had to be like this." He didn't sound very sorry. "But it was for the best. Now no one else will want you. That teacher of yours wont ever want to touch you again after this. You're damaged goods now."

Rachel blinked back more tears and closed her eyes. She struggled to breathe. The pain in her chest was beginning to get worse and her head ached from where Jesse had hit her with the gun earlier. Her body felt as though it was covered in bruises and she was finding it almost impossible to stay awake.

"How about I go find us something to eat?" Jesse knelt down next to Rachel. He smiled at her and brushed her hair away from her eyes. "There's a gas station down the road. I'll go get us some food and come back."

Rachel didn't respond.

Jesse stood up and went over to get the ropes off the floor next to the chair Rachel had occupied earlier. He grabbed the roll of tape and made his way back over to where Rachel was lying on the floor. Without saying a word he knelt down and started to tie her ankles together and her hands behind her back. He ripped some tape off and placed it over her mouth.

"You stay here and behave yourself. I'll be back soon." Jesse placed a kiss on the top of Rachel's head, before slipping the gun into the back of his jeans, grabbing his bag and making his way out of the warehouse. Rachel opened her eyes and watched as he walked out a door that was located on the left side of the room, locking it behind him as he went.

The second he was gone, Rachel tried to pull her hands free from their restraints. She pulled at the ropes and tried to undo the knot Jesse had tied around her wrists, but it was no use. They were much too tight. She tried moving her feet. The knot around her ankles wasn't as tight as the one around her wrists, but she couldn't pull the rope off without using her hands.

Tears of frustration began to fall down her cheeks. She knew this was going to be her only chance to get away from Jesse. She needed to think quickly and do something before he returned.

She looked around the room, hoping to find something to use to help undo her ropes. She was about to give up all hope, when she noticed a large piece of scrap metal lying on the floor about ten yards from where she was. Rachel didn't think before inhaling a deep breath and rolling onto her stomach. She winced in pain, but tried her best to ignore it. She closed her eyes and began to pull herself across the cold concrete.

Her chest ached with excruciating pain as she used all her willpower to slowly pull herself across the floor. It was everything she had in her power not to pass out from the pain. Her head throbbed and her whole body screamed for her to stop and rest. She didn't. She couldn't. If she wanted to get away from Jesse now was her only chance.

It took her almost ten minutes to crawl across the filthy, dust covered floor. The ground left deep cuts and grazes on her bare skin, but she couldn't think about that right now. She had more important things to worry about.

Finally, she made it to her destination and she didn't think twice before turning onto her side, placing her wrists against the side of the metal and rubbing the ropes against the sharp iron. Her gaze kept looking up towards the door, praying Jesse wouldn't come back and see what she was trying to do.

Every muscle in her body was throbbing in pain. Tears fell down her cheeks and she suppressed the urge to scream in both frustration and agony.

It felt like forever before the ropes finally severed. She sighed a sigh of relief and slowly sat herself up. She ripped the tape off of her mouth and leaned down to untie the ropes around her feet. When she was free from her restraints, she slowly pulled herself to her feet.

Rachel turned toward the door and limped over to it. She turned the handle and pushed as hard as she could against the door. It didn't move. Once again, she suppressed the urge to scream. Turning her back to the door, she staggered over to the table on the other side of the room and opened her school bag. She found her cell phone and tried to turn it on.

Flat battery.

It was at that moment when she heard the sound of Jesse's footsteps outside the building. Rachel's whole body stiffened. She swallowed the dry lump in her throat and quickly raced over to grab the chair she had been sitting in earlier. Rachel didn't think twice before she quickly stumbled across the room, back over to the door. She pressed her back against the wall and lifted the chair up against her chest.

The door opened as Jesse walked into the room. Rachel didn't have a chance to think before she lashed out and hit Jesse as hard as possible over the head with the chair. Jesse grunted and fell to his knees. He turned his head to look at Rachel in both anger and shock. Rachel inhaled a sharp breath, before hitting him again.

And then she made a run for it. She didn't stay long enough to see how much damage had been done to Jesse. Rachel stumbled out the opened door and tried her best to run as fast as she could.

It was pitch black outside and Rachel had no idea where she was. As she ran, her foot caught on something and she fell down onto her knees. She landed hard on a sharp rock, cutting her shin and grazing the palms of her hands. She winced in pain and quickly pulled herself to her feet. Warm blood began to trickle down her leg, but she couldn't stop to look at it. She needed to get away before Jesse came looking for her.

Rachel pushed herself to run faster, ignoring the pain that shot through her body. The cold night air only added to her discomfort and she found herself wishing she had had enough time to put her shirt back on before running outside.

"RACHEL!" Her body stiffened at the sound of Jesse's voice. She continued to run, not looking back. "GET BACK HERE!" he called, voice filled with annoyance. "YOU CAN'T GET AWAY FROM ME!"

Rachel sobbed silently to herself as she continued to race through the darkness.

After only a few minutes her tired body just couldn't keep going. She found a large tree and collapsed behind it, hoping the tree would keep her hidden from Jesse's eyes long enough to catch her breath. She sat with her back pressed against the trunk and her arms folded across her bare chest. Her skirt and bra were the only items of clothing Jesse had left on her, and they were doing nothing to keep the bitter cold away from her skin.

Warm tears fell down her flushed cheeks. She tried her hardest to breathe as quietly as possible, but the pain in her chest made it almost impossible to breathe at all.

She wished desperately that someone would come and find her. She wished Jesse would leave her alone and she wished she was back home, in her own bed, away from this horrible, terrifying nightmare.

"Where are you Rachel?" Jesse's voice pulled her from her thoughts. "I know you're here somewhere. You can't run from me!"

She heard the sound of a gun being loaded. Rachel stiffened in terror. She began to feel around her feet, looking for something she might be able to use as a weapon. Her hand came in contact with a rock. It wasn't much, but it would be better than nothing. Her fingers closed around the rock and she held it firmly in both her hands. She wasn't going to go down without a fight.

Jesse's footsteps grew closer and she knew it wouldn't be long until he found her. Now was her only chance to do something. She jumped to her feet, turned to face him and used every ounce of muscle power she had in her body to throw the rock at Jesse. It landed hard on his shoulder, causing him to drop the gun and stagger backwards in surprise.

"Stupid Bitch!" He yelled, before diving for the gun.

Rachel didn't think before dropping to her knees and reaching out for the gun. Jesse was quick, but thankfully Rachel managed to grasp it only a second before he did. She turned to aim the handgun at him and without thinking she placed her finger on the trigger and pulled.

Jesse fell backwards and landed with a loud thump on the grass. Rachel watched with wide eyes, waiting for him to get up and chase after her.

He didn't move.

She slowly walked over to where he was lying. She stood over his body, looking into his lifeless eyes. He wasn't breathing and a small trickle of blood was seeping out of the gunshot wound on his head.

A loud sob fell from her dry lips. She dropped the gun, took a few steps backwards, and then turned on her heel and ran in the opposite direction.

Her legs ached as she pushed her sore body to run as fast as what was physically possible.

Rachel was just about to stop and give up, when she saw a set of car headlights heading towards her. She sighed a sigh of relief and ran towards the headlights, praying whoever was driving the car would see her and stop.

Rachel waved her arms in the air, trying to get the drivers attention. Thankfully, the car slowed down and came to a stop only a few yards in front of Rachel. The driver opened his door and jumped out.

"Miss, are you okay? What happened?"

Rachel had no time to reply, before everything around her slowly turned black and she collapsed onto the ground.

* * *

**Yeah, I know it was short but I just felt it needed to end here...I was going to add more, but it just didn't happen...**

**What did we think? Good? Bad? Horrible? I'm actually really worried about this chapter...I've never written anything like this before...**

**I'm writing chapter three as we speak...are you guys keen to read more? Please send me some reviews to tell me what ya think...the more feedback I get the more motivation I'll have to write! **


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Hey guys I am so sorry this took so long to post up...life has been pretty crazy lately and to be honest I've had a bit of writers block! This chapter isn't as long as I was hoping it would be and I'm not sure I like it very much...There are some parts I'm a bit unsure about and I'm really scared you guys wont like it...so please leave me some feedback and let me know what you think.  
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**All rights to Glee belong to Fox and Ryan Murphy...I'm just borrowing the characters for a little while! :)  
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The next time Rachel woke up it was daytime and she was lying in a bed that wasn't hers. She had a horrible headache and her body felt sore all over. She tried to inhale a deep breath, but a sharp stab of pain in her chest made it almost impossible to breathe. Rachel slowly opened her eyes to take in her surroundings. She was in a strange, white hospital room. Her body was connected to a number of different tubes and machines, and a heart monitor beeped loudly from beside the bed.

All the horrible memories instantly came flooding through her mind. She remembered the dark, cold warehouse. She remembered the uncomfortable chair and the ropes tied around her hands and feet. Rachel remembered the feeling of Jesse's cold fingers against her skin. She remembered the way he forced himself onto her, ignoring her cries for help.

Her whole body tensed with fear and a loud sob escaped her lips.

"Rachel?" The familiar voice sounded from beside her bed. Rachel turned her head and was more than shocked to see Mr. Schue seated in a chair in the corner of the room. He got to his feet and came to stand next to her.

She looked up at him, her eyes wide with fear, shock and anxiety. Her breathing turned ragged and hot tears burned behind her eyes. Rachel's whole body felt numb and her mind was nothing but a horrible swirl of painful thoughts and memories. She pulled her eyes away from Will and looked around at the sterile hospital room. The room was filled with bouquets of fresh flowers, giant stuffed animals and get well cards addressed to her. Rachel wondered how long she had been in hospital for.

"Rachel?" Will's voice was soft and gentle. "How are you feeling?"

Rachel looked up at her teacher. She thought back to the conversation she and Mr. Schue had had in the choir room the last time she spoke to him. Will had made it very clear to her then that he didn't want to have anything to do with her. So, why was he here? Why was he pretending like he cared? Rachel knew he never really cared about her. He only slept with her because she forced him into it. He only wanted her in Glee club because she was a good singer. He was only nice to her because he was her teacher and it was his job.

"Can you please leave?" Rachel's voice was barely a whisper. "I want to be by myself right now." She swallowed back the tears she could feel behind her eyes.

A look of hurt passed across his face. "I don't want to leave you," he replied, voice filled with emotion.

Rachel knew he was lying, and she knew he was only there because he felt sorry for her.

She didn't want his pity.

However, Rachel would be lying if she didn't admit that part of her wanted him to stay. She wanted him to wrap his arms around her and hold onto her forever. She wanted him to tell her everything was going to be okay. She wanted him to make her feel safe and normal again. She wanted him to take away the horrible, empty feeling that had settled in her chest.

She wanted him to want her.

But no one would ever want her now. Now she was damaged goods. She was dirty and filthy and Jesse had left his mark all over her body. She was worthless and repulsive. Why would anyone ever want someone like her? Mr. Schue didn't want her before, so he definitely wouldn't want her now.

"Can you shut the door on your way out?" Rachel closed her eyes and suppressed the urge to cry.

Will didn't want to leave her. He didn't want to turn his back on her and walk out the door. He wanted to stay with her. He wanted to hold her in his arms and never let her go. He wanted to tell her how sorry he was for everything he did to her. He had already walked out on her before, he didn't want to do it again.

But Rachel didn't want him there. He didn't blame her. Not after the way he treated her. Not after the way he rejected her and broke her heart.

Will hated himself more than he hated anyone else in the world. No, that wasn't true. He hated Jesse St. James the most. Jesse was the one who did this to her. He was the one who abducted her and abused her. He was the one who attacked a poor, innocent girl. Rachel was lucky to be alive. The doctors had said that if she didn't get to hospital when she did, she would have died of hypothermia and blood loss.

The thought made Will's heart ache.

Will found himself wishing Jesse was still alive, just so he could find him and kill him himself for what he did to her. The police had found Jesse's body about fifty yards away from the road where Rachel had been picked up. They said the cause of death was from a gun shot wound to his head. They didn't know what had happened between him and Rachel, but they were almost certain Rachel had killed Jesse with his own gun in an act of self defence. The police had been waiting for Rachel to wake up so they could question her about the incident.

Everyone had been waiting for her to wake up. Rachel had been asleep for almost two days and during that time almost every person who had ever met Rachel had came to see her. Rachel's dad's visited her in the evenings when they finished work. The Glee club had been taking it in turns to see her before and after school, and even the kids from Vocal Adrenalin had been there to show their support.

Lots of people came and went, but only Will stayed. He hadn't left the hospital at all since he found out Rachel was there.

"I'm not going to leave you," he told her, voice breaking.

Rachel rolled onto her side so she was facing away from him. She ignored the surge of pain that shot through her when she moved. "I don't want you here," she lied, eyes filling with tears. "Please leave me alone."

A long moment passed before Will finally nodded his head. "If that's what you want."

"It is."

Will sighed and slowly turned towards the door. "I'll come back to see you later," he promised her.

And then he walked out the room, closing the door behind him as he went.

Will went to let one of the nurses know that Rachel was now awake. The nurse told him that Rachel's doctor was currently busy with another patient, but someone would be there soon to check on her. After talking to the nurse, Will went outside the hospital to phone Rachel's dads. Leroy and Hiram were both at work, so he left a message on their voice mail, letting them know their daughter had woken up.

When he finished on the phone, Will went back inside the hospital. He made his way to Rachel's room and sat himself down in an empty seat in the corridor outside her room. He had a perfect view of Rachel's door from where he was seated. Will sat down in the leather chair, inhaled a deep breath and prepared himself for a long wait.

-0o0-

Rachel spent the next few hours being checked over by doctors and speaking to the police about what happened to her. She wished everyone would leave her alone. She was tired of answering questions and she was tired of talking about what Jesse did to her.

The doctors told Rachel she had two broken ribs and a hairline fracture on her skull which should heal itself in time. Apart from a few deep cuts and a lot of bruising, that was all the damage she had sustained. They told Rachel she was very lucky to be alive.

She didn't feel very lucky.

Her dad's came to see her after work. They asked her how she was feeling. Rachel lied and told them she was fine. She wouldn't tell them the truth. She wouldn't tell them that she was actually feeling worse than she had ever felt before. She wouldn't tell them how numb and empty she felt. How scared and terrorized she was.

They asked Rachel questions about the attack. They wanted to know what happened between her and Jesse, although Rachel suspected the police had already spoken to them. Rachel didn't want to talk about it, so she told them she was tired and wanted to get some sleep. It was a lie. She wasn't really tired and she didn't want to sleep, but it worked and after a few minutes both her fathers left.

Once they were gone, Rachel turned onto her side, away from the door, and closed her eyes.

When she opened them Finn was seated in the chair next to her bed. Rachel was surprised to see him, but she didn't say anything. They both looked at each other for what seemed like forever, neither of them speaking a word. Rachel wondered what he was doing there. She wished he hadn't come. She wasn't ready to talk to people yet.

There was a time when Rachel would have been happy to see Finn. She would have smiled brightly at him and her heart would have fluttered with excitement. She would have hugged him tightly and she would have wanted to talk to him for hours.

But not any more. Now she wanted to be left on her own. She didn't want Finn – or anyone – seeing her like this. She didn't want people to know what happened to her. She didn't want them to be disgusted by her. She didn't want them to pity her and feel sorry for her.

"Hey, Rach." Finn was the first to break the silence. He smiled at Rachel and leaned forward in the chair. "How are you feeling?" Rachel was growing tired of people asking her that. Every time someone asked her if she was okay it only reminded her that she wasn't.

"I'm fine."

Finn looked down at his hands. "I hope you don't mind me being here. I just wanted to come and see how you were doing." He moved nervously. "I can go if you want me to?"

Rachel shrugged her shoulders. "It's okay."

Finn relaxed back in the chair. "I brought you some flowers." He pointed to a vase of lavenders beside her bed.

Rachel looked over at the flowers next to her. "Thanks."

They fell silent for a moment before Finn asked, "So, when are you allowed to go home?"

"I don't know." She glanced down. "The doctors haven't told me yet."

"Well, hopefully it wont be too long."

Rachel nodded in agreement.

"We've all been real worried about you." Finn was eager to keep the conversation flowing. "The Glee club has been coming in each day to see you. Mr. Schue hasn't even left your side since you got here."

This surprised Rachel. "Mr. Schue has been here the whole time?"

Finn nodded. "Yeah. He hasn't even gone home to sleep or anything."

Rachel didn't know what to think of that. She furrowed her brow in confusion. Had he really been sitting by her bed for two days straight, worried about her? But it didn't make any sense. Two days ago he had told her he didn't want anything to do with her. He had made it very clear he wasn't interested in any kind of relationship with her.

So, why had he spent more than 48 hours sitting at her bedside, waiting for her to wake up?

"He's out in the waiting room right now," Finn stated.

"He is?"

He nodded and then proceeded to change the subject.

Rachel didn't really listen to what Finn was saying, she was too busy thinking about Will and why he hadn't left the hospital when she had kicked him out earlier. She had given him the perfect opportunity to leave and go home, yet he was still there.

What did he want?

"I guess I should probably go," Finn said, pulling Rachel out of her thoughts. "It's getting late."

"Okay." Rachel nodded.

"I'll come and see you tomorrow."

Rachel wanted to tell him not to bother. She would be happier if he didn't. She would be happier if no one came to see her. But she didn't want to hurt his feelings. Finn was only trying to be nice. Rachel forced herself to smile at him.

"See you later, Rachel."

Finn squeezed her hand in his, before getting to his feet and walking out the room.

After Finn left, Rachel closed her eyes and went to sleep. While she slept, she dreamed of Jesse. She dreamed she was back in the warehouse, tied down in the chair. Jesse stood in the corner of the room, his dark eyes fixed only on her. She thrashed around in the uncomfortable chair, screaming for help. Begging for him to let her go.

And then Jesse grabbed her shoulder, causing Rachel to scream even louder. Her whole body stiffened in terror.

"Rachel, wake up," a soft, gentle voice whispered in her ear. "You're having a bad dream. Wake up, Sweetheart."

Her eyes flew open and Rachel was surprised to find that she was back in the hospital room. She was covered in a layer of sweat and her heart felt as though it was about to jump its way out of her chest. Rachel's eyes were wide with fear and hot tears began to slowly make their way down her cheeks.

Mr. Schue was standing next to the bed. His hand sat gently on her shoulder and his eyes were filled with nothing but panic and concern.

Rachel burst into tears at the sight of him.

"Shhh," he murmured, stepping closer to her. His hand began to gently stroke her arm. "It was only a dream. You're safe now."

Without thinking, Rachel turned towards her teacher and wrapped her arm around his waist, pulling herself closer to him. She needed to feel safe again. She needed him to hold her and tell her everything was going to be okay. She wanted him to take away her pain and make everything better. She wanted him to fix her. To make her feel whole and complete again.

In that moment she didn't care why he was there. She didn't care if she was supposed to be angry at him. She forgot all about their problems and the fact that he rejected her only days earlier. None of those things mattered.

Will sat down on the edge of the bed and pulled Rachel into his lap. He wrapped his arms around her fragile body and held her against his chest, slowly rocking her back and forth. Rachel buried her face in the crock of his neck and snaked her arms around his shoulders. Her whole body shook violently with each painful sob.

Will felt as though his heart had been stabbed repeatedly with a sharp knife. He had never felt so hopeless and frightened in all his life. He wished there was something – anything – he could do to take Rachel's pain away. He wished he could undo the damage Jesse had done to her and make everything better again.

"Don't leave me," Rachel whispered, between sobs.

His grip around her tightened. "I'm not going anywhere." Will placed a kiss on the top of her head and began to rub soothing circles into her back. "I'll stay for as long as you want me to."

And he did.

After what seemed like forever, Rachel's tears finally dried and her sobs turned into hiccups. Her grip around Will loosened as her exhausted body slowly drifted back to sleep. Rachel's eyes fluttered closed and her breathing slowed back to an even pace.

Will continued to hold her in his arms even after she fell asleep.

He wasn't ready to let her go yet.

It was late at night when he finally tucked Rachel back into bed. Will was careful not to wake her as he stood up and gently laid her down on the mattress. He made sure she was covered with the blankets and then went to sit in the chair next to her bed.

"Wait!" Rachel whimpered. "Don't go." Her eyes fluttered open.

"I'm not going anywhere," he promised, squeezing her hand in his.

To his surprise, Rachel moved over, giving him enough room to lay down beside her. Will didn't think before kicking his shoes off and gently sliding into the bed. Rachel moved closer to him and tucked her head under his chin.

They were both asleep in minutes.

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**AN: Okay so what did we think? Good? Bad? Terrible? I know a few people had issues with the last chapter. Some people didn't like the fact that Rachel killed Jesse...other people didn't like how dark it got...I did try to warn you guys it was going to get pretty dark...things aren't going to get much happier any time soon...Rachel has a lot of demons to fight and a lot of obstacles to try and overcome...But I can promise you it wont always be this depressing...she will get through it, but it will take time and patience.**

**Anyways I hope you guys are still keen to read more...let me know if you are!**

**Feedback would be very much appreciated :)  
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	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Hey guys! First of all a BIG thank you to those people who reviewed the last chapter...It makes me so happy to hear you guys are still enjoying the story! You are all amazing and I hope you keep reading!**

**Also, I wanted to apologize for taking so long to update...I have been having a lot of trouble writing this chapter...and I am still not 100% confident I like what I have written here, but I wanted to give you guys something and I needed to get this chapter out of the way so I can start with the next one...so I want to apologize in advance if any of you hate what you are about to read...**

**And just so you know this is unbeta'd so please try your very hardest to ignore any mistakes...and I'm almost certain there will be a lot of them!**

**happy reading :)  
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Rachel woke up only a short while later, feeling confused and disorientated. She opened her eyes, thinking she was back in the warehouse. Jesse was laying down beside her, their bodies only an inch apart. His arms were wrapped tightly around her torso, not letting her get away. Rachel tried to move, but Jesse's grip was much too strong.

Fear and Terror passed through her in waves. A loud sob escaped her lips and her whole body stiffened in shock. Rachel could feel the adrenaline begin to make its way through her veins.

"Get away from me!" She thrashed around, trying to free herself from his grip. "Let me go!" Tears burned behind her eyes.

His grip instantly loosened and Rachel didn't think before quickly flying out of the bed. She scrambled to her feet and pressed her back against the closest wall. The room was dark, making it hard to see anything.

"Rachel, it's me." The sound of Mr. Schuester's familiar voice confused Rachel to no end. Will slowly climbed out the other side of the bed and flicked on the lamp that was sitting on the night stand. The dark room was instantly illuminated. "You're safe. I'm not going to hurt you." He held his hands out in front of him, trying to look as non-threatening as possible.

It took Rachel a long moment to comprehend what was happening. She looked over at Will, eyes filled with fright and anxiety.

"Rachel, are you okay?" he asked, concerned. "Do you need me to go and get a doctor?"

Rachel pulled her eyes away from her worried teacher and looked around the hospital room, taking in every little detail of her surroundings. "I thought...I thought you were Jesse..." Rachel's voice broke. "I...thought he had come back."

Will shook his head and slowly began to walk around the bed, towards Rachel. "No. He's not coming back. Jesse is dead. He can't hurt you."

Rachel wanted to believe him, but deep down she knew Jesse would never really leave her. She knew he would always be right there in the back of her mind. She knew that every time she closed her eyes he would be watching her. Every time she went to sleep she would dream of him. Every time she was on her own she would think about the night he attacked her. Jesse might be dead, but he wasn't gone. He would never really be gone.

"Why don't you come lay back down?" Will asked, voice soothing. He reached out and gently took Rachel's hand in his. "You should try and get some more sleep. It's late."

Rachel looked down at their joined hands. "I...I'm sorry...I didn't mean to act like that...I just...I just forgot where I was...I'm sorry." A tear fell from Rachel's eye and slowly slid down her cheek. She quickly wiped it away. "I'm sorry," she repeated.

"Don't be sorry." He ran his thumb over the back of her hand, trying to offer her some sort of comfort.

Rachel looked up at him, eyes red with tears. "I don't know what's wrong with me." Her voice was barely even a whisper.

"Nothing is wrong with you. You've been through a lot, Rachel." That was a huge understatement. "Now why don't you come lay back down and try to relax?"

Rachel nodded and after a moment of hesitation she made her way back to the bed and slowly laid down on the mattress. Will pulled the covers over her shoulders.

"Do you need me to get you anything?" he asked, concerned.

Rachel shook her head. "No. I'm okay."

He nodded and sat down in the chair next to her bed.

Rachel couldn't help but feel embarrassed. She didn't want Will to see her like this. She didn't want him to see how weak and insecure she had become. She didn't want him to know how damaged she was. She didn't want him to pity her more than he already did.

"I'm not crazy," she told him, meeting his gaze. "I...I know you probably think I'm crazy...but I'm not..." She swallowed the dry lump in her throat.

Will shook his head and reached over to hold her hand. "I know you're not crazy," he told her, voice soft and tentative. "I would never think that." More tears prickled behind Rachel's eyes. She held them back. "Now why don't you try and get some more sleep? You're tired and you need to rest."

"Will you stay with me?" she asked, not wanting to be alone just yet.

He smiled at her and nodded. "I'm not going anywhere."

Rachel closed her eyes.

After a few minutes she slowly drifted back to sleep.

-o0o-

Rachel woke up the following morning feeling worse than she had the day before. She had a terrible headache and her chest screamed in pain every time she tried to take a breath. Whatever painkillers her doctor had put her on were obviously beginning to wear off.

"Hey, Rach!" She turned her head and was surprised to see Finn seated next to the bed. "How are you feeling?" he asked, getting up and coming to stand beside her.

"I'm okay," she lied. "What are you doing here, Finn?"

"Mr. Schue asked me to come and keep you company. He had to go into work so I told him I'd come sit with you for a while." He smiled. "I had a free period this morning anyway."

"I don't need a babysitter," Rachel replied, sounding annoyed.

"I know that." Finn slipped his hands into his jacket pockets and moved awkwardly. "We just thought you might like some company."

The last thing Rachel wanted was people coming to see her because they felt sorry for her. She wasn't some kind of helpless charity case who needed to be babysat. She could look after herself.

"The nurse brought you some breakfast." Finn decided to change the subject. He pointed to a tray of dry toast and overcooked eggs sitting on the cupboard next to her. "You should probably eat something."

Rachel looked at the food and shook her head. "I'm not hungry." The last thing she felt like doing was eating.

"You need to keep your strength up, Rachel."

"I told you I'm not hungry." Her voice was cold and clipped.

Finn nodded and sat back down in the chair, deciding not to press her on the subject.

"Everyone in Glee Club misses you," he said, after a few minutes of silence passed between them. "We can't wait until you come back to school. Glee just isn't the same without you there."

Rachel knew he was only trying to make her feel better. She knew the other Glee members wouldn't really miss her. If anything they were probably happy she wasn't there to annoy them.

When Rachel didn't respond, Finn continued talking, "Can you believe Regionals is only six weeks away? And we haven't even decided what songs we want to perform yet!"

Rachel nodded in agreement. "I guess you guys should probably decide on a set list soon."

Finn, eager to keep the conversation going, sat forward in the chair and said, "Yeah, but we'll wait for you to come back before we decide on anything, after all you are going to be singing all the solos."

Rachel looked up at him. "I don't think so, Finn."

He furrowed his brow in confusion. "What are you talking about? You're our best singer! We wont stand a chance against Vocal Adrenaline without you as our lead singer!"

She shrugged her shoulders. "Well, I'm not really sure I want to sing any more..."

"What?" Finn's eyes widened in shock. "You can't be serious!" he exclaimed. "You love singing! Why would you give it up?"

"I just don't feel like doing it any more," she stated, shrugging.

Finn ran both his hands through his hair while he tried to absorb what Rachel was telling him. "What do you mean, you don't feel like doing it any more?"

Rachel sighed. "I just don't think I could sing again, even if I wanted to."

"Rachel you can't really mean that! Singing is your passion, how could you stop?"

She didn't expect Finn to understand. "It used to be my passion," she told him. "But not any more." Rachel wasn't sure she could ever feel passionate about anything ever again.

"Are you really going to let him beat you?" Finn questioned, voice filled with frustration. "Are you really going to let Jesse get the best of you, Rachel?"

Rachel flinched at the mention of Jesse's name. "I don't want to talk about it, Finn."

Finn wasn't going to give up that easily. "I'm not going to let you give up. I care about you too much to let you throw away all of your dreams like this!"

Rachel closed her eyes and suppressed the urge to break down and cry. Finn didn't understand. How could he possibly understand what she was going through? "Can you please leave me alone now? I'm tired and I think this conversation is over."

"No." He shook his head. "I'm not leaving you like this."

"Damn it, Finn!" Rachel snapped. "I want to be by myself right now, so can you please just leave me alone?"

He sighed and got to his feet. "Fine. I'll come back later."

She didn't say anything in response. Rachel watched as Finn grabbed his school bag off the floor and walked out the room, closing the door behind him as he went.

The second she was on her own, Rachel let go of the breath she had been holding onto. She cradled her face in both her hands and closed her eyes. It was the first time she had been alone since she arrived at the hospital.

The silence was deafening.

-o0o-

"I'm sorry, William, but I can't afford to keep paying for a substitute teacher. I need you to come back to work." Figgins sat on the other side of his desk, hands clasped together in his lap. "I understand things have been hard for you. Rachel is a very special student of yours and I know you want to be at the hospital with her, but you have to come back to work. Your other students need you here."

Will sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He didn't want to leave Rachel on her own. He wanted to be there with her. He wanted to keep her company and make sure she was okay. How was he supposed to look after her if he was at work?

Figgins continued talking, "Besides, I spoke to Rachel's parents and they say she is going to be fine. The doctors think she'll be okay to go home tomorrow."

Will sat back in the chair and inhaled a deep breath. The clock on the wall above Figgins desk said it was almost eight o'clock. It had been over an hour since he had left the hospital. He hoped Rachel was okay.

"Can I please just have one more day off? I'll make it up to you!" Will pleaded. "I'll work detention for a whole month!"

Figgins shook his head. "I'm sorry, but we really need you here. Two teachers are down with stomach flu. I can't afford to hire any more substitutes."

Will sighed in defeat. "Fine," he replied, before getting out of his chair and starting towards the door.

"How is Miss Berry?" Figgins asked, just as Will was about to leave.

"She's as good as can be expected." He shrugged his shoulders and turned to look at the Principal.

Figgins nodded. "If she needs anything, please let me know. I'm here to help."

He thanked the principal and quietly walked out the room, closing the door behind him as he went.

He stepped into his office only a few minutes later and was instantly greeted by a large pile of papers sitting in the middle of his desk. Will sighed in frustration and sat himself down in the leather chair on the other side of the desk. He pushed the pile of Spanish tests to the side and placed his briefcase down in front of him. It was at that moment when a quiet knock sounded on his door. Will looked up just in time to see Emma Pilsbury walk into the room. She was dressed in a bright yellow cardigan and a orange pencil skirt. She smiled at Will and turned to close the door.

"Hi, Will," she greeted. "I heard you were back at work, so I thought I'd come see how you were doing."

He nodded and leaned back in his chair. "Yeah, Figgins couldn't afford to give me any more time off." Will returned her smile and gestured to one of the seats across from his desk. "Why don't you have a seat?" he offered.

Emma looked at the offered chair. She hesitated for a long moment before finally sitting down. "How's Rachel? I wanted to visit her, but I thought she might want some time to herself for a while. Do you think I should visit her? Maybe I should visit her? I don't want her to think I don't care about her..."

"It's fine, Emma." Will smiled. "Rachel knows you care about her."

Emma relaxed. "How is she?"

He shrugged his shoulders and looked down at the top of his desk. "Honestly, I've never seen her like this before," he stated, voice broken. "I want to help her, but I feel so powerless to do anything."

Emma nodded in understanding. "I'm sorry Will," she said, voice quiet. "I know your Glee kids mean a lot to you. I can't imagine how hard it must be to see one of them go through something like this." Emma reached across the desk and placed her hand over his. "I'm here if you need anything."

"Thanks, Em." Will looked up at her. "It means a lot."

Emma didn't stay much longer after that. After she left, Will packed what books he would need into his briefcase and headed to his first class.

His day went by much too slowly. Will couldn't help but keep looking at the clock every five minutes, wishing time would hurry up so he could get out of school and go see Rachel. He was on edge all day and found it almost impossible to focus on any of his classes. His students spent most of their class time talking between themselves and reading magazines, rather than doing any actual work. Normally, Will would have told them off and given them extra homework for not paying attention, but today he was just too distracted to care.

When the last bell for the day finally rang, Will was more than eager to pack up his briefcase and get out of there. He waited for his students to leave the classroom, before he quickly hurried out the door and down the busy corridor towards his office.

"Hey buddy!" Will sighed as he passed Sue in the hallway outside the choir room. "Get a haircut? Looks awful." He rolled his eyes and continued walking. It was much easier to ignore her immature comments than come up with a response. Besides, he had more important things to worry about right now.

Will went straight into his office to grab the pile of paperwork off his desk. He began to stuff the Spanish tests into his briefcase, deciding he would try and grade them tonight while he was sitting at the hospital.

"Mr. Schue." He looked up to see Finn Hudson standing in the doorway of his office. "Can I talk with you for a moment?"

-o0o-

Rachel spent most of her day going in and out of conciousness. The pain medication her doctor had her on made her feel tired and exhausted. She woke up a few times when her nurse came to check on her, and once when her dad called in to see how she was doing, but other than that she remained in a deep, dreamless oblivion.

It was late afternoon when she finally woke up. Rachel opened her eyes to find that Mr. Schue was back in the chair beside her bed. She was surprised to see that her teacher was busy grading a large pile of Spanish tests. He was so focused on what he was doing that he didn't even notice Rachel watching him.

"You came back," she said, voice groggy with sleep.

Will's head shot up at the sound of Rachel's voice. He removed his reading glasses and smiled. "Of course I came back." Will got to his feet and turned to sit the pile of Spanish tests on the chair behind him. "I'm sorry I had to leave this morning; Figgins called me into work."

Rachel looked down at her hands and shrugged. "It's okay. You don't have to apologize. You have nothing to be sorry for."

He shook his head. "No, Rachel, I have a lot to be sorry for."

She didn't know what to say in response to that. Rachel looked up at her teacher and furrowed her brow in confusion. She wondered why he would say something like that. He hadn't done anything wrong.

Will cleared his throat and looked away from his student. "I spoke to Finn this afternoon," he stated, changing the subject. "He told me to tell you that he's sorry if he upset you earlier."

"It's okay."

Will didn't think before turning around and sitting himself down on the edge of Rachel's bed. "He also talked to me about your decision to quit Glee Club." Will lifted his head and looked at Rachel over his shoulder. "Is it true?"

Rachel glanced up at her teacher and shook her head. "Actually, I never said I was going to quit Glee. I can't quit Glee." Will couldn't help but sigh a sigh of relief. "You guys need twelve members. If I quit the club then you can't perform at regionals."

"Great!" Will smiled.

"But..." Rachel continued. "That doesn't mean I want to sing, because I don't. So, I'll just sway in the background until you guys can find someone else to replace me."

His smile instantly disappeared. "What?" Will turned his body around so he was facing her. "Rachel, you can't really mean that?"

"I do." Rachel's voice was empty of all emotion. "I don't want to sing any more."

He inhaled a deep breath and looked down at his hands, trying to comprehend what she was telling him. A few minutes of silence passed before he finally replied, "Rachel, I know things are hard for you right now, but please don't give up. I know you can get through this." He gave her a small smile and reached over to place his hand over hers. "_We_ can get through this."

Rachel shook her head and quickly pulled her hand away from his. "Please don't do that." She looked away from him, eyes brimming with fresh tears.

"Do what?" he asked, confused.

"Pretend like you care about me."

Will's eyes widened in shock and his heart all but stopped. How could she say something like that? How could she even think that? Of course he cared about her! If anything he probably cared about her too much. He swallowed the dry lump in his throat and reached out to touch her again, needing the contact. "I do care about you, Rachel," he told her, voice broken.

"No!" Rachel shook her head and moved away from her teacher. "Don't touch me!" she snapped. "And stop lying to me! I'm not stupid, Mr. Schuester, I know you're only here because you feel sorry for me. I know you're only here because you're my teacher and it's your duty to look after your students."

"You know that isn't true."

She glared at him, eyes filled with tears. "Do I?" she questioned, voice cold. "Because you made it pretty clear to me last week that you didn't want anything to do with me."

Will got to his feet and turned to face her. He opened his mouth to respond, but Rachel continued talking, not giving him a chance to say anything.

"In the choir room that day you told me I wasn't worth it. You couldn't believe that I thought you would risk your whole career just to be with me." Rachel pulled her eyes away from him and looked down at her hands. "You told me you could do better than me." Her voice had lowered to almost a whisper.

Will's heart broke. He wished, more than anything, that he could rewind time and take back every hurtful thing he had said to her that day. He couldn't help thinking this was all his fault. If he had told Rachel how he really felt, instead of lying to her and rejecting her, maybe he could have protected her from Jesse and prevented any of this from even happening.

Rachel continued, not giving him a chance to speak. "It's okay, Mr. Schue." She inhaled a breath and turned her head to meet his gaze. "I don't blame you for not wanting me. Why would anybody ever want someone like me? Especially now. Look at me." She gestured to herself. "I'm damaged goods."

"No." He shook his head. "That's not true!"

"But it is true," she stated, voice quiet and broken. Rachel looked away from her teacher as more tears began to fall down her cheeks."That's why Jesse did what he did. So you wouldn't want me."

Will felt as though his heart had been ripped out of his chest and broken into a million pieces. He took another step towards the bed, wanting to be closer to her. "Look at me Rachel," he pleaded, voice filled with pain and desperation. He reached out and gently cupped her chin in his hand, urging her to turn her head and look up at him. Will waited until he had all of her attention before saying, "You're not damaged goods." He used his thumb to wipe away the fresh tears that were falling down her cheeks. "And I will always want you."

Rachel's eyes widened in surprise and her breathing hitched. Whatever she had expected her teacher to say, that most definitely was not it. "You don't mean that," she murmured.

Will gave her a warm smile and gently stroked the side of her bruised face. "I do," he whispered, before leaning over and placing a kiss on the top of her head. "You are beautiful, Rachel." His voice was soft and warm and filled with nothing but affection and promise. "So beautiful."

Rachel looked up at him, her eyes puffy and red from crying. Her gaze met his and she instantly found herself captured in the depths of his beautiful green eyes. Then, without thinking, she pulled herself up in the bed and turned to wrap her arms around his shoulders, burring her face in the crock of his neck. She closed her eyes and inhaled a deep breath, breathing in his familiar scent. Her whole body instantly relaxed as she felt Will's arms encircle her waist and pull her tighter against his warm body.

Being close to him made her feel safe and protected. The fear and terror she had been holding onto seemed to dissolve away and for the first time in three days she allowed herself to forget all about her problems. Deep down, Rachel knew that the feeling of peace and security wouldn't last for long. She knew she still had a lot of obstacles to get over, and a lot of demons to fight, but for the first time in days she finally felt like maybe, just maybe, there was something worth fighting for.

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**AN: Okay...so I hope this didn't disappoint anyone...I would really appreciate it if you could comment and let me know what you thought...Reviews really make my day (the good and the bad) So please if you wouldn't mind taking just a moment of your time to hit the review button and leave me some feedback...I'd be forever grateful!**

**So...Rachel has decided to stop singing...what are our thoughts? I wonder if someone will be able to change her mind? She still has a very long, hard road ahead of her, but I think I might be able to see a little tiny flicker of light somewhere at the end of the dark tunnel..and I'm sure with a bit of tender loving care from a very sexy Spanish Teacher, she might find it just a little easier to recover...**


	5. Chapter 5

**I'M SORRY! I know it's been ages since I last updated! I guess you guys have all probably stopped reading this story now, right? :(**

**I would have updated ages ago, but my Auntie, who I am really close to (she's like a mom to me!) had a brain Aneurysm and has been in hospital for the past 5 weeks. For about a week of that time we didn't think she was even going to make it, so life has been very hard on me and my family. We've been spending a lot of time in hospital and well to be honest the last thing I have felt like doing is writing anything...I hope you guys all understand! My Auntie is getting better every day, and we hope she'll be home from hospital soon (fingers crossed!) Anyways I am slowly getting back into writing so hopefully the next chapter will be finished much sooner than this one!**

**I want to apologize if this chapter isn't very good, I have found it hard to focus on writing with everything that has been happening lately, and this is the best I have been able to come up with...I promise things will pick up now my life is beginning to calm down a little bit...I just hope you guys stick by me until then!**

**Anyways I'll stop going on now and let you guys read...hope you enjoy!**

_All rights to Glee belong to Murphy and Fox. Just borrowing the characters for a little while! I promise to give them all back in one piece! :)_**  
**

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Rachel was allowed to leave the hospital the following afternoon.

"You will need to come back for a check up in two weeks," her doctor said, while signing the discharge forms. "And I will give you a prescription for some strong pain medication to take; but otherwise I think you will be fine to go home. Your injuries should heal on their own if you get plenty of bed rest and take it easy."

"Okay." Rachel nodded.

"I also ask that you see a psychiatrist at least twice a week for the next six months."

"What?" Rachel looked up at the doctor, confused. "You can't be serious?"

"You have been through a very traumatic experience, Rachel, and I think you would benefit well from having some counseling sessions. I'm going to give you the number for a psychiatrist who specialises in helping women in your position."

"But psychiatrist's are for crazy people," Rachel responded, instantly. "I'm not crazy."

"I know you're not crazy, but that doesn't mean you don't need help." The doctor smiled and folded her arms across her chest. "Please, just give it a try."

She sighed in defeat. "Fine. I'll try it."

"Good." The doctor handed Rachel her prescription for pain medication and wrote down the psychiatrist's number on a small slip of paper. "I have to go check on some of my other patients now, is there someone here to take you home?"

"I'll take her home." Rachel looked up and was surprised to see Mr. Schuester standing in the doorway.

"What are you doing here?" She questioned, surprised to see him there.

The doctor excused herself, leaving Rachel alone with her teacher. "I told your dad's I would take you home," he stated, walking into the room.

"Aren't you supposed to be working today?"

"Yes, but Ms. Pilsbury said she'd look after my classes so I could come here."

"Oh...that's real kind of her." Rachel slowly got to her feet, ignoring the sharp stab of pain that passed through her rib cadge when she moved. "I'm going to go change out of my hospital gown," she told him, while grabbing a pair of sweatpants and a hoodie out of the bag her dad's had packed for her. She started towards the bathroom on the other side of the room. "I wont be long."

Will nodded and took a seat in the chair beside her bed. "Take your time."

Fifteen minutes later, Rachel was dressed and ready to leave the hospital. After making sure she hadn't forgotten anything, Rachel followed Mr. Schuester out of the busy hospital and across the parking lot towards his familiar light blue car. Neither of them spoke a word as he opened the passenger side door and helped her get in. She waited while Mr. Schue stored her bag in the trunk and hurried around to get into the drivers seat.

"You didn't need to come get me," she told him, after they had been driving for a few minutes. "My dad was going to take time off work to take me home."

"Well now he doesn't have to." Will smiled at her, his dark green eyes filled with warmth and affection. "I told your dad's I would stay with you until they finished work."

Rachel didn't know what to say in response to that. She wasn't used to Mr. Schue caring for her like this. Truthfully, she wasn't used to anybody caring for her like this. Rachel pulled her eyes away from her teachers face and turned to look out the window beside her. They drove the rest of the way in silence.

When they arrived at her house, Mr. Schue helped Rachel out the car, before grabbing her bag from the trunk and walking with her to the front door. She found the spare house key her dad's kept hidden under one of the flower pots on the front porch and quickly unlocked the door to let them in.

As she walked through the front door, Rachel waited for something to happen. She waited to feel that warm happiness she usually felt whenever she was home. She waited for the emptiness in her chest to disappear and she waited for everything to be normal again. She was home now. Everything was going to get better.

Only it wasn't.

Nothing changed. She still felt numb and empty. That familiar sense of peace she usually felt whenever she walked through the front door of her house never came.

"Rachel?" Mr. Schue spoke gently. "What's wrong?" he questioned, concerned.

She shook herself from her thoughts and turned to look at him. "Let's go take my bag up to my room." Ignoring his question completely, Rachel closed the front door and started down the hall.

Will nodded and quietly followed her upstairs to her room.

Rachel's bedroom was exactly the same as she had left it the last time she was there. Posters of her favorite musicals and performers still covered her bright yellow walls. The trophies and prizes she'd won at different dance and singing competitions were still sitting on the shelves around her room. All of her make up and beauty products were still scattered over her dressing table, and all her favorite CD's were still sitting in a large pile beside her bright pink stereo. It was as though nothing had changed at all.

But everything had changed. Walking into her room was like walking into a scene from her past, and it gave her an unpleasant feeling in the pit of her stomach. Her bedroom used to be her happy place. A place where she could relax and be herself and turn off from the rest of the world. But not any more. Now she was standing in the middle of a room filled with unpleasant reminders of the person she used to be. The life she used to live.

"Where do you want me to put your bag?" Mr. Schue asked, pulling Rachel out of her thoughts.

"Just put it down over there," she said, pointing to the floor at the end of her bed. "I'll unpack it later."

He nodded and went over to sit the bag down where Rachel had instructed.

It was at that moment when it dawned upon Rachel that the last time her and Mr. Schue were alone in this room they had been in bed together. The memory caused her entire body to flush with heat. Rachel's mouth suddenly felt dry and her cheeks burned with embarrassment. She still couldn't believe she had had sex with this man.

"Rach? What's wrong?" Mr. Schuester was now standing directly in front of her, his body only inches away from hers. He reached out and gently placed his hand on her shoulder. "You feeling okay?"

No. She was definitely not feeling okay. All the memories from their night together began to swirl around in her head, overwhelming her. Her chest tightened, her breathing hitched and the room suddenly felt much smaller. "I think I might take a shower," Rachel said, needing some time to herself. She needed to clear her mind and she needed Mr. Schue to leave before she started hyperventilating in front of him.

He furrowed his brow and studied her for a long moment. "Sure." He gave her a small smile and squeezed her shoulder, before dropping his hand and taking a step back. "I'll wait for you downstairs."

Rachel wanted to tell him he didn't need to stay. She wanted to tell him he could go home, she was more than capable of looking after herself for a few hours. However, she didn't think she was ready to be alone just yet. The thought of being on her own in this big, empty house caused a feeling of dread to pass down her spine and settle in her belly.

"Okay."

After a moment, Mr. Schue nodded and quietly left the room, closing the door as he went.

The second she was on her own, Rachel let go of the breath she had been holding onto. She sighed, relived to have some time to herself. Rachel turned her back to the closed door and made her way over to her bathroom on the other side of the room.

She didn't hesitate before turning the shower on and slowly stripping herself from her clothes. Once she was out of her clothing, Rachel stood in front of the bathroom mirror, looking at her reflection in the glass. Dark bruises covered almost every inch of her body. Her eyes burned with fresh tears when she took in the marks Jesse had left all over her skin. Dark purple and black splotches were scattered all over her, an instant reminder of what Jesse did.

She quickly turned away from the stranger in the mirror and stepped under the scalding spray of water. Without thinking, she grabbed the bar of soap that was sitting on the shower ledge, and began to scrub hard at her skin, wanting to remove every trace of _him_ from her body. She needed to wash him off of her. She needed to feel clean and normal again.

Starting with her arms, she began to scrub vigorously. The deep cuts on her skin burned as the soap seeped into her wounds. She ignored it and continued scrubbing. Pain was good. Pain meant she was feeling something, and right now something was better than nothing.

Tears of both frustration and anger began to leak from her eyes and a loud, painful sob escaped her throat. She gritted her teeth and continued to scrub.

Then the soap slipped out of her hand, landing on the tiled floor beneath her feet. She went to pick it up, but as she bent over a sharp stab of intense pain passed through her ribcage, causing Rachel to collapse onto her knees. She clutched at her sore side as another loud sob escaped her throat. Not bothering to stand up, she retreated to the corner of the shower and cradled her face in both her hands, crying silently to herself.

She wasn't sure how long she remained like that, but after what seemed like forever a loud knock sounded on the bathroom door. "Rachel?" Mr. Schue's voice was filled with concern. "You okay in there?"

When she didn't respond, he grew worried. "Rachel? Talk to me!"

No response.

"I'm coming in okay?" Will quickly pushed the door open and rushed into the small, crowded bathroom. His breath caught in his throat when he saw Rachel sitting in the shower, her entire body visibly shaking. He hurried to her side and quickly turned the water off, before grabbing a towel and wrapping it around her shoulders.

"Rachel, Sweetheart, everything is going to be okay." He wrapped an arm around her and gently pulled her body against his chest. "Shhh, you're safe now." He began to rub soothing circles into her back, trying to calm her down. Rachel turned her head and buried her face into his chest. She clung onto him tightly, desperate for the contact.

"I'm going to pick you up, okay?" Rachel nodded and circled her arms around his shoulders, holding on tightly. He didn't hesitate before scooping her up into his arms and lifting her off the cold, tiled floor. Carrying her bridle style, he turned around and walked out of the bathroom and into the bedroom. Will gently lowered her to the ground so she was standing on her feet, and then went over and grabbed her robe off of the hook on the back of her door. "Here, put this on," he murmured, helping her into it.

More tears began to fall from her eyes. Rachel looked down at her feet, suddenly feeling shy and embarrassed. Will took her hand in his and squeezed it gently. "You're going to be okay, Rachel," he told her, voice soft and warm. He leaned forward and placed a kiss on the top of her head, before taking her damp towel into the bathroom and hanging it over the shower rail.

Rachel sat down on the edge of her bed, pulling the white, fluffy robe tighter around her damp body. She looked up as Will walked back into the room, her eyes filled with tears. "I thought everything would go back to normal once I was home," she told him, voice breaking. "I thought...I thought that maybe once I was out of hospital I might feel better again."

Her words ripped at Will's heart, making his chest ache in a way he'd never felt before. His entire body was engulfed with the sudden urge to protect this young, innocent girl. He found himself wishing he could wrap his arms around her and hold onto her forever, never letting anything or anyone harm her ever again.

Rachel wiped her wet eyes on the back of her hand and looked down. "But nothing has changed," she continued, sounding defeated. "I still feel numb and empty...and scared."

Will tried to suppress his own tears as he crossed the room to stand in front of her. He knelt down on the floor in front of Rachel's knees and gently reached out to cup the side of her face, stroking her cheek with his thumb. He didn't know what to say. There were no words that could undo the damage Jesse had done to her. Will swallowed the lump in his throat as a single tear fell from his eye and slowly slid down his cheek.

Rachel's breath caught in her throat when she saw that he was crying. She inhaled a sharp breath and slowly lifted her hand to his face. Brushing her fingers across his cheek, Rachel gently wiped away her teachers tears. She didn't want him to cry. She hated seeing him upset, knowing it was because of her.

He leaned over and pressed his forehead against hers, closing the distance between them. "I'm so sorry, Rachel," he whispered, voice pained. "God, I'm so, so sorry."

"Don't apologize." Rachel closed her eyes as more tears slowly slid down her face. "None of this is your fault," she said, stroking the side of his face with her fingers.

He shook his head. "No. It is my fault." Will inhaled a deep, shaky breath and slowly leaned back so he could see her eyes. "This is all my fault," he stated, voice filled with sadness and guilt. "I should have went to the police the first time Jesse attacked you. I should have told them what he did to you. I could have stopped him. I could have prevented this from happening, but I didn't. I didn't do anything. I just sat back and let him hurt you again."

"You know that's not true." Rachel leaned forward, wanting to be closer to him again. She placed both her hands on either side of his face and looked into her teacher's tear filled eyes. "This isn't your fault. You didn't know Jesse was capable of this kind of thing," She said, trying to reassure him. "I don't want you to blame yourself for this, okay?"

Will couldn't help but marvel at how fucked up this whole situation was. He wasn't supposed to break down and cry in front of her. He was supposed to be the strong one. He was supposed to be comforting her, not the other way around. Rachel was the one who needed to be taken care of. She was the one who had been attacked and abused in the most terrible way possible, yet here she was comforting him and trying to make him feel better. What the fuck was wrong with him?

Will closed his eyes and exhaled a breath. "You are much too good for me, Rachel," he told her, after a moment had passed between them. "Do you have any idea how amazing you are?"

Rachel blushed at his words and looked down at her hands, suddenly feeling shy. She wasn't used to her teacher saying those kinds of things to her. "Well, you're not so bad yourself," she responded, a smile playing at the corners of her mouth.

He chuckled and leaned forward to place a light kiss on her cheek. Rachel's heart seemed to miss a beat as he planted the most gentlest of kisses against her skin. The second his soft lips made contact with her cheek, Rachel's breathing hitched, her skin prickled and a silent sigh escaped her mouth. She had forgotten how good it felt to be kissed by this man.

Rachel's cheek tingled even after he pulled his lips away. "How about we go downstairs and I'll make us something to eat while we wait for your dad's to come home?" Will offered, while slowly getting up off the floor.

She smiled up at her teacher and nodded. "Sounds great!"

-o0o-

"Rachel, why don't you start by telling me about yourself?"

Rachel moved awkwardly on the leather lounge while she tried to think of how to respond. She didn't know how she was supposed to do this. Rachel had never been to see a psychiatrist before, and to say she was nervous would be a huge understatement.

The second Rachel had walked into the psychiatrist's office, she instantly felt uncomfortable and awkward. She knew what was going to happen here. Rachel knew she would have to sit in front of this stranger for the next hour and talk about all her problems. She knew the psychiatrist would want to know every little detail of her life and she knew she was going to be forced to talk about the horrible Jessie incident in which she had been trying her hardest to forget.

Rachel's psychiatrist, Dr. Charlotte Raine, was a woman in her mid thirties who specialized in helping women who had been through the same thing Rachel had been through. She was a nice lady, with shoulder length blonde hair, warm blue eyes and a smile that seemed genuine. Her voice was soft and encouraging, and she greeted Rachel in a way that made her feel welcome and relaxed.

Rachel instantly disliked her.

"What do you want to know?" Rachel responded, voice clipped and cold. She began to drum her fingers impatiently against the armrest of her chair, wishing time would hurry up so she could get out of there and go home. This was the first time she had left her house since she arrived home from hospital two days ago, and she would be lying if she didn't admit that being out in public made her feel a little anxious.

Rachel pulled her eyes away from the beautiful doctor and looked around the psychiatrist's office, taking in every little detail of her surroundings. The room was small, yet spacious. The walls were painted dark red which matched the timber floor perfectly. A huge window allowed plenty of daylight to filter through the blinds, making the room feel warm and bright. Paintings and photos hung all around the office and two leather lounge chairs sat in the very middle of the room, Rachel sat in one and the psychiatrist occupied the other.

"Well, you could start by telling me about your singing," the doctor said, encouragingly. "What made you decide you wanted to sing and perform?"

Rachel shrugged her shoulders. "My dad's. They were the ones who took me to dance classes and singing lessons." Rachel crossed and uncrossed her legs, trying to get comfortable. "My fathers always wanted to have a daughter who was heavily involved in the arts."

Dr. Raine nodded and quickly wrote something down in her notebook. "And do you enjoy singing, Rachel?"

"Yes."

"Is that what you want to do when you leave school?"

"No." It had only been ten minutes and Rachel was already growing tired of answering all these silly questions. "It used to be, but not any more. I no longer want to sing."

"And why is that?"

"Because, I've changed my mind."

"You changed your mind?" the doctor prodded.

"I'm allowed to change my mind."

Dr. Raine leaned back in her chair and clasped her hands together in her lap. "Yes, of course you are." She continued to study Rachel intently. "But there must be a reason you don't want to perform any more?"

Rachel pulled her eyes away from the psychiatrist and looked down at her hands. "I don't understand what my singing career has to do with anything. I thought I was here to talk about my attack?"

"Do you want to talk about your attack?" The doctor questioned, voice softer than velvet. "If that's what you want to talk about, we can discuss that..."

"No. I don't want to talk about it," Rachel responded, instantly. "But I thought that's the whole reason I came here, so you can fix me?"

"Fix you?" Dr. Raine repeated. "What makes you think you need to be fixed?"

"I hate it when you do that!" Rachel snapped, angrily. "Can you please stop answering my questions with a question?"

"I'm sorry, Rachel, but I'm trying to get to know you better. The only way I can really know you is by asking you these questions." The doctor smiled warmly. "Do my questions make you feel uncomfortable?"

Rachel sighed and shook her head.

"Good." Dr. Raine looked pleased. "So, why don't you tell me about some of your friends at school?"

"I don't have any friends."

"No friends at all?"

"Not really. Most people my age find it hard to talk to me."

"And why do you think that is?"

Rachel shrugged.

"So, you don't have any friends at all?" Dr. Raine asked, keeping her voice gentle and soft.

Rachel sighed and leaned forward in the chair. "Well, I guess the Glee Club likes me sometimes."

"You have friends in Glee?" The psychiatrist questioned, writing something else down in her notebook.

"Yes, but they aren't really my friends. They tolerate me because they need my voice, but that's all." Rachel's voice was empty of all emotion. "The only person in Glee who seems to like me is Finn."

"Finn?"

"Finn Hudson. He's the star quarterback."

"And he's your friend?" Dr. Raine asked, her dark blue eyes fixed on Rachel's face.

"Yes, I guess he is." Rachel shrugged. "He wants to be my boyfriend, but I'm not interested in dating him again."

"You used to date Finn?"

"We dated for like a week, before I met..." Rachel drifted off, not wanting to finish that sentence.

"Before you met Jesse?" the psychiatrist asked. "Is that what you were going to say?"

Rachel nodded and looked down at her feet. "Yes, but I don't want to talk about him."

"That's fine, Rachel. We don't have to talk about him." The doctor gave Rachel another one of those warm, encouraging smiles. "Why don't you tell me what happened between you and Finn? Why did you break up with him?"

"I didn't break up with him," Rachel explained. "He broke up with me."

"Why?"

"Because he wasn't ready for a relationship with me."

"But he's ready now?"

"Yes."

"But now you don't want to be with him?"

"No. I like somebody else," Rachel replied, without thinking.

"You like someone?" Dr. Raine sat back in her chair and wrote something else down on the paper in front of her.

"Yeah, but nothing can happen between us."

"And why not?"

"He's not attracted to me."

"How do you know that?"

Rachel began to play with a loose thread on the hem of her jacket. "He told me."

"Does this boy go to your school?"

Rachel didn't know how to respond to that. She wasn't sure how comfortable she felt discussing Mr. Schuester with this woman. "He's not a boy," she murmured, after a long pause. "He's older than me."

"And how old is he?"

A long pause.

"31."

The doctor wrote that down. "How did you meet him?"

"I can't tell you that."

"Why not?"

Rachel swallowed the lump in her throat and looked up at the woman across from her. "Because, if anyone ever found out what happened between us he would get into a lot of trouble."

"Something happened between the two of you?"

Rachel instantly scolded herself for opening her mouth. "No." She shook her head and swallowed the lump in her throat. "Nothing happened."

"Rachel, you can talk to me. Whatever you tell me will remain confidential." The doctor closed her notebook and placed it on the table in front of her. "I want to help you, but I can't help if you don't trust me."

Rachel crossed her arms over her chest and tried to relax back into the leather chair. "Can we please talk about something else?" she asked, eager to change the subject. "I don't want to discuss this."

The doctor nodded. "Fine. What would you like to talk about?"

Truthfully, Rachel didn't want to talk about anything with this woman. Psychiatrist's were supposed to be for crazy people, and Rachel wasn't crazy. She didn't need to sit and give this woman her life story. She didn't need to come here two hours every week for the next six months just to answer all her silly, pointless questions. What was the point of it? There was no way this woman could repair any of the damage Jesse had done. There was no way she could make all of Rachel's problems go away just by talking her through them. No, Rachel knew better than to believe she could be of any help. She knew better than to put any faith in Dr. Raine's ability to heal her.

Rachel wondered how she had let her dad's talk her into coming here today.

It was a stupid idea.

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**So...what did we think? I would love to hear your feedback (good or bad!) The reviews for this story are beginning to drop, which makes me worry that maybe you guys aren't liking the direction this fic is taking? I hope there are still people out there interested in reading more...anyways I'd really appreciate a review if you could spare the time to tell me what you think!**

**thank you for reading! :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**What's that? Another update already? Wow! That's like two chapters in less than two weeks, right? Well I think that might be a new record for me! **

**I want to apologize if there is a lot of spelling errors in this chapter, I've re-read it a couple of times but it's pretty late here in Australia and I'm beginning to get tired, so if you notice any mistakes (and there's probably lots of them!) you can blame it on my poor sleep deprived brain ;)**

**This chapter is a little shorter than my others but I felt it needed to finish where it did. I promise to try and update as soon as I can, but I'm not sure when that will be...I haven't started writing the next chapter, but hopefully it wont take me long to get it done and posted :)**

**I want to thank everyone for all the kind thoughts you left regarding my Aunt who is in hospital, you guys are amazing. And thanks to those people who left reviews or added this story to their favorite list/ alerts. You rock!  
**

**Anyways, enough rambling from me! Enjoy!**

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It was Monday morning and Rachel had decided she was ready to go back to school.

After getting out of bed, she took a quick shower, got dressed and headed downstairs to find what things she would need for her classes that day.

Both her dad's were sitting at the breakfast table when she walked into the kitchen. "Good morning!" Rachel gave them both a bright smile, before going over to the fridge and helping herself to a glass of orange juice.

"Good morning, Sweetie."

"How are you feeling this morning?"

Rachel shrugged. "I'm okay." She took a few sips from her juice and then added, "I've decided to go back to school."

Her words caused both her dad's to stiffen in shock. "Ah, Rachel, are you sure that's such a good idea?" Leroy asked, sounding concerned. "Isn't it a bit too soon?"

Rachel shook her head. "No, I don't think so."

Hiram spoke up, voice filled with worry, "But you're still healing from your injuries. The doctor said you need to take it easy. I really don't think going back to school this soon would be a good idea, Honey."

"But I want to go back. I'll be fine, honestly."

"Maybe you should wait another week?" Leroy suggested. "Nobody is going to expect you back at school this soon."

"But I'm ready to go back," she argued, growing frustrated. "I need to get my life back again, and I can't do that if I'm sitting around here feeling sorry for myself."

Leroy and Hiram looked at each other for a long moment before turning back to their daughter. "We really don't think this is a good idea. You've been through such a big ordeal, you should wait a little bit longer."

Rachel was beginning to grow tired of people telling her what to do. They had no idea what she had been through. She didn't expect them to understand how she felt. "This isn't up for debate," she snapped, sounding annoyed. "I'm going back to school and there is nothing you can say to stop me." And with that, she poured what was left of her juice down the sink and walked out of the kitchen to gather her things for school.

Lucky for Rachel, the police had found her backpack and returned it to her house while she had been in hospital. She made sure it still had everything in it she would need for her classes and went back into the kitchen to say a quick goodbye to her dad's.

"Wait, at least let me drive you," Leroy said, grabbing his keys.

Rachel sighed. "Fine. Let's go." She gave her other dad a quick kiss goodbye, before grabbing her backpack and heading out the front door.

It didn't take them long to drive the short distance across town to McKinley high. Once they arrived in the school parking lot, Leroy switched the car off and turned to look at his daughter. "You don't have to do this," he told her, voice soothing. "You shouldn't push yourself."

Rachel looked up at her dad and forced herself to smile. "I'm not pushing myself," she told him. "This is what I want to do. I'm ready to go back." Truthfully, Rachel wasn't sure if she was really ready to come back here. But she knew it was something she needed to do. She needed to try and gain control of her life again. She needed to move on from what happened. She needed to prove to herself, and to everyone else around her, that Jesse didn't have control over her. She needed to try and forget what happened to her, and the only way she could do that was to go back to school and get on with her life.

Rachel unbuckled her seat belt and grabbed her backpack off the back seat. "Please don't worry about me, Dad. I'll be fine."

"I'll always worry about you, Sweetie." Leroy smiled and leaned across to kiss his daughter on the head. "Call me if you need me, okay?"

Rachel nodded and without another word she opened her door and quickly climbed out. She waved to her dad, before turning and walking towards the front entrance of the school. "I can do this," she murmured under her breath. "I can do this." She hoped if she told herself this enough times she might begin to believe it was true.

The second she walked through the doors of McKinley high, almost everyone stopped what they were doing and turned to look at her. The whole corridor went completely silent as they stared at Rachel in shock, and it took every ounce of willpower Rachel had not to turn around and walk straight back out again. It was obvious they all knew what had happened to her. Everyone was staring at her with nothing but pity in their eyes and it only made her feel worse. Inhaling a deep breath, she looked down at the ground and hurried towards her locker, trying her very best to ignore everyone else around her. When she made it to her destination, she turned away from all the watchful eyes and quickly began to grab what books she would need out of her locker. To say she felt uncomfortable would be a huge understatement.

"What are you all looking at?" Santana's voice echoed through the silent corridor. "Get out of here before I punch you all in the nose!" To Rachel's surprise, Santana and Brittany came to stand behind her, blocking Rachel from view. "Get out of here!"

After a moment the other students finally went back to whatever it was they were supposed to be doing. Rachel instantly relaxed and turned to smile at Santana and Brittany. "Thank you," she murmured, closing her locker. "That was real nice of you."

"Don't mention it." Santana shrugged. "So, what are you doing here? Mr. Schue didn't mention you would be coming back to school this week?"

Rachel pulled her backpack on over her shoulders and replied, "I was ready to come back."

The three girls started walking down the hallway in the direction of the choir room. It was Monday which meant their first class for the day was Glee. Rachel couldn't help but feel a little nervous about going to Glee Club. She hadn't seen the other Glee members since before her attack and she worried about how they might react to her being there. People were already treating her differently and she had only been at school for a few minutes. Even Santana and Brittany, who usually hated her, were acting as though they were her friends.

Rachel's thoughts were interrupted when they made it to the choir room. They were late. The other students were already sitting down and listening to Mr. Schue as he talked them through a song he wanted them to do. Rachel stood in the doorway, debating whether or not she should go inside. Maybe coming here was a bad idea? Was she rushing into something she wasn't ready for? Was it too soon to be coming back to school?

"Rachel?" Finn was the first to notice she was there. He quickly got to his feet and hurried over to where Rachel, Santana and Brittany were standing in the doorway. "What are you doing here?"

Mr. Schue quickly spun around at the mention of Rachel's name. His eyes widened when he saw the young brunette standing in the doorway. Rachel was dressed in a pair of baggy sweatpants and a sweater that looked to be about two sizes too big for her. Her hair was tied back into a loose, messy ponytail and the dark circles under her eyes made it clear to him that she hadn't been sleeping properly. What was she doing here? It was much too soon for her to be coming back to school. She should still be at home resting and recovering from what happened to her.

"Sorry we're late," Rachel said, ignoring Finn's question. She forced a smile to her lips and walked into the room. Without looking at any of the other students, Rachel went over and took a seat on a vacant chair at the back of the class.

Everyone in the room went silent. The rest of the Glee club shared identical looks of both confusion and surprise while they tried to comprehend the situation. Rachel moved awkwardly in her chair and for the first time in her entire life she hated all the attention she was receiving. She wished everyone would stop looking at her as though she was an alien from another planet and at least try to act as though everything was normal.

Maybe coming here today wasn't such a good idea after all?

"Rachel, what's going on?" Will asked her, after a moment of silence had passed. "I thought you were supposed to be at home resting?"

Rachel looked up at her teacher. "I was ready to come back." Her voice was only a whisper.

"Well, it's good to have you back, Rach." It was Finn who replied. The young footballer made his way over to Rachel and sat down in the chair beside her. "We've all missed you."

Rachel didn't know what to say to that, so she decided to change the subject. "What song are you guys working on at the moment?" she asked, eager to talk about something else. "I guess you must be pretty busy preparing for Regionals?"

Will continued to study Rachel for a long moment. He knew it was much too soon for her to be back here. It had only been a week since her attack and she still had a lot of recovering to do, but he knew he couldn't discuss that with her now. He would have to wait until later when they were alone.

"Actually, we were just about to go to the Auditorium to run through the song we've been practicing this week." Will cleared his throat and pulled his gaze away from Rachel. "You guys ready?" he asked, addressing the rest of the club.

It took them only a few minutes to make their way down to the auditorium. When they got there, the Glee club went back stage to get ready for their performance while Will and Rachel sat down in the third row from the stage to watch.

The second they were alone, Will turned to Rachel and asked, "So, care to tell me what's going on? Why are you here, Rachel?" He made sure to keep his voice quiet. "Don't you think it's a bit soon for you to be back at school?"

"No, I'm ready to be back here," she whispered. "This is what I want."

Will sighed and without thinking he reached over and took her hand in his. "I just don't want you to push yourself too quickly," he told her, his voice only a whisper. "Maybe you should talk to your doctor before you make decisions like this?"

Rachel looked down at their joined hands. "I'm not pushing myself," she lied. "I'm fine."

Will knew she wasn't really fine. How could she be fine after everything she had been through? He could see the sadness and pain hidden behind Rachel's beautiful brown eyes every time she looked in his direction. Her eyes, which used to sparkle with excitement and happiness, were now filled with nothing but hurt, depression and anxiety. That spark that used to light up her face with energy and life, had left her completely, leaving behind a dark, sad version of the person she used to be.

"I'm here for you, Rachel," he told her, after a long pause. "If you need me at all today, I want you to come and find me. It doesn't matter what time. Even if I'm in the middle of a class, I want you to come and get me, okay?"

She nodded and squeezed his hand with hers. "You don't have to worry about me. I'll be okay." Rachel gave him a small smile before letting his hand go and turning to face the front. It was at that moment when the Glee club came onto the stage in front of them, putting an end to Rachel and Will's conversation.

After Glee club was over, Rachel left the Auditorium and started making her way towards the chemistry classroom ready for her next class. Kurt and Tina, who were also in Rachel's chemistry class, caught up to her along the way. "It's great to have you back," Kurt said, walking at Rachel's side.

"We've all been really worried about you," Tina added, sounding sincere.

Rachel smiled at them both and replied, "Thanks. That means a lot."

They continued walking while Rachel tried her best to ignore all the glances the other students were casting her way, and all the whispering she could hear them doing when they thought she couldn't hear. She hated being the center of attention like this.

"Don't worry about them," Kurt whispered quietly in her ear, as though he could hear exactly what Rachel had been thinking. And then, to Rachel's surprise, he came to a stop and turned to look at a group of students who were gathered around in the corridor, all of them looking at Rachel. "What's your problem?" he spat, voice colder than ice. "Haven't you ever seen an actual human being before?"

Rachel watched as the group of students quickly looked away from her and hurried off in the other direction. "You really didn't have to do that," she said, once they were gone.

He shrugged. "You shouldn't have to worry about those Neanderthals." He smiled at Rachel and looped his arm through hers. "Come on, we better get to class. We don't want to be late."

-o0o-

Rachel's day passed much the same. She went to all of her classes and did her best to ignore everyone else around her. She focused all of her attention on her school work, trying to catch up on what she had missed while she had been absent.

While she had been away, Rachel had become the talk of the school and she hated it. Almost every person in all of her classes continued to watch her, looking at her in a pitiful way that made Rachel feel uncomfortable and awkward. And, to make things worse, they all seemed to be treating her differently. Even the teachers were acting as though she was some kind of helpless charity case, talking to her as though she was a small child and giving her easier work than what they would normally ask her to do. The other students were too scared to approach her, or talk to her, and she went the whole day without receiving a single slushy facial.

At lunchtime, Rachel slowly made her way to the cafeteria to get something to eat. As she walked into the room, everyone went quiet and the loud chatter that had filled the room before she got there, turned to quiet whispers between friends. Rachel looked down at the floor as she made her way to the end of the lunch queue. After getting her lunch, she turned around and headed over to her usual table on the other side of the cafeteria. The rest of the Glee club were already there. Finn smiled brightly when he saw her approaching.

Pulling a chair out next to him, he gestured for her to sit down. "Hey Rach!"

Rachel gave everyone at the table a nervous smile and slowly slid into the seat Finn had saved for her. "Hey." She sat her tray of food in front of her and took a sip from her bottled water.

"We were just talking about Regionals," Finn said, trying his best to include Rachel into their conversation. "We think we should try to talk Mr. Schue into letting us do a classic rock song."

She screwed the lid back onto the bottle and sat it down on her tray. "That sounds like a great idea," Rachel responded, eager to keep the conversation going. While they were talking about Regionals they weren't talking about her, and the last thing she wanted was for the Glee Club to start asking her questions. "ACDC or Guns 'N Roses would be an ideal choice."

They spent the next half an hour discussing what songs they would like to perform at the upcoming show choir competition. When the bell rang, indicating it was the end of lunch, everyone slowly began to make their way out of the cafeteria.

"I'll save you a seat in Spanish class," Finn offered, getting up from his seat. "You can borrow my notes to catch up on what you might have missed," he added. Rachel smiled at Finn and politely thanked him for his offer. She told him she would see him in class, before slowly making her way out of the crowded cafeteria. She headed straight to her locker so she could get what textbooks she would need for Spanish.

Rachel had only just made it to her locker, when she overheard Santana and Puck talking quietly between themselves just a few yards away. They were standing at Santana's locker, organizing a party Puck was throwing at his house that weekend. Apparently Puck's mom and his little sister were going out of town to visit a sick relative, leaving Puck at home by himself for two days. He had a big party planned, with lots of music, alcohol and under-age drinking. Everyone was invited.

Closing her locker, Rachel turned to face Puck and Santana. "Excuse me?" she interrupted, just as Puck started bragging about the giant beer keg his friend was bringing to the party. Puck instantly stopped talking and both him and Santana turned to look at Rachel. "I couldn't help but overhear you guys talking about a party this weekend?" she made it out to be a question.

Santana and Puck both shared an identical look of surprise. "Ah, yeah." Puck nodded.

Rachel didn't think before blurting out, "Can I come?"

Puck cleared his throat and moved awkwardly. He didn't know what to say in response. Puck really didn't think it would be a good idea for Rachel to come. His parties could get pretty wild and he didn't want Rachel to feel uncomfortable after everything she had been through. But, how could he say no to her? He didn't want her to think he was a total jerk.

Santana replied before Puck had the chance to say anything. "Sure! Of course you can come!"

Rachel smiled at them both. "Great!" And without another word, she spun around and hurried off towards the Spanish classroom, eager to get to class on time.

Puck and Santana watched as she walked away. Once Rachel was out of earshot, he turned to look at Santana. "Are you sure it's such a good idea for Berry to come?"

Santana shrugged and turned to get something out of her locker. "I don't know, probably not, but it's not like we could say no to her after everything she's been through, could we?"

He shook his head. "No. I guess not."


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey guys! A big thanks to everyone who reviewed/story alerted/favorited the last chapter! It means so much to me that you are still with me on this story! I hope you all continue to read it (and if you could take the time to leave a review I'd be forever grateful!) I hope you are enjoying Broken Star and you like the direction I'm taking things!**

**Anyways, enough rambling from me! I'll let you get on with reading more...sorry this chapter isn't as long as some of the others, I promise I'll try and make this next one longer!**

_All rights to Glee belong to Ryan Murphy and Fox. I'm just having some fun with the characters for a while...I promise to return them in one piece (Although I might hang onto Mr. Schuester for a little while...)  
_

* * *

Rachel was the first person to arrive at Glee practice Thursday afternoon. She had been sitting in the empty choir room for only a few minutes when Finn hurried in, looking annoyed and agitated about something.

"Is it true?" he asked, instantly.

She looked up at him, surprised by his abruptness. "Is what true?"

Sitting down in the empty chair next to her, Finn placed his bag on the floor by his feet and turned to look at Rachel. "Are you really planning on going to Puck's party Saturday night?"

Rachel shrugged and looked down at the ground. She pushed a stray strand of her hair back behind her ear before replying, "Yeah, Puck said I was welcome to go."

Finn sighed in frustration and shook his head. "Rachel, I really don't think that's a good idea. Puck's parties can get pretty out of control."

"I'll be fine," she snapped.

"Rachel, don't you think you might be pushing yourself too much?"

"I told you I'm fine." Her voice was filled with nothing but annoyance. Rachel didn't appreciate Finn storming in here and telling her what she should or shouldn't do. She was really beginning to grow tired of everyone treating her like she was a child. Ever since she woke up in the hospital everyone had been acting weird around her. That was why she needed to go to this party. That was why she needed everyone to see that she was perfectly fine. She needed them to know that Jesse didn't have control over her now. She needed them to see that she wasn't going to let what happened stop her from doing what she wanted to do. This party was the perfect opportunity to prove to everyone that she was fine.

"Have you ever been to one of Puck's parties?" Finn questioned. "They can get pretty out of control, Rachel."

"I'm sure I'll be fine." She looked up just in time to see Mr. Schue walk into the room. Her gaze met his and she couldn't help but smile at her teacher. Her whole body seemed to relax at the sight of him and a familiar warmth passed through her body, making her heart race just a little faster. She didn't know why, but she always felt better whenever she was around him.

"Hey guys!" he greeted, smiling warmly. "How are you doing?"

"We're fine!" Rachel responded, pulling her gaze away from her teacher and turning to glance at Finn. "Finn and I were just talking about Regionals," she lied, deciding it would be better if she didn't inform him about her plans to attend Puck's party. She knew Mr. Schue would hate the idea of her going.

"Oh, great!" Her teacher smiled and went over to place his briefcase down on the piano. "I have another song I want us to try out, I think it might be ideal for Regionals," he told them, while pulling some sheet music out of his case. It was at that moment when the rest of the Glee Club started to arrive.

Rachel spent the next hour listening as the Glee club discussed song choices for Regionals. Rachel made no effort to join in on the discussion, since she wasn't actually planning on singing at the competition anyway.

When Glee was over, Rachel grabbed her bag and got to her feet.

"Rachel, could I see you for a moment?" Mr. Schuester called to her.

"Sure!" She smiled and sat back down in her seat. Rachel watched as all the other students made their way out of the choir room. Once they were gone, Mr. Schue went over and closed the door, before coming to sit beside her on the chair Finn had been sitting in.

"I haven't had much time to talk with you this week." His voice was soft and gentle and his eyes were filled with nothing but concern. Rachel wasn't sure she would ever get used to him caring for her like this. "How has your first week back at school been?"

"Fine." Rachel shrugged and looked down at her hands. She wouldn't tell him the truth. She wouldn't tell him that the past week had been absolutely terrible. She wouldn't tell him that it took every single ounce of willpower she had just to climb out of bed each morning and come to school. She wouldn't tell him that she hadn't slept at all since she left the hospital, because she was too scared that if she did go to sleep she would dream of that horrible night again.

"You know you can talk to me, don't you?" Mr. Schue asked, gently placing his hand on her shoulder. "I'm here for you, Rach. You can trust me."

"I know." She looked up at him and smiled. "I do trust you."

"Good." His gaze locked with hers and for a long moment Rachel found herself lost in his beautiful green eyes.

Clearing her throat, she looked away from her teacher and got to her feet. "I should probably go. It's getting late and I don't want my dad's to worry."

Mr. Schue nodded and slowly stood up. "Do you need me to give you a ride home?"

She couldn't help but smile at his thoughtfulness. "It's okay. I'll be fine to drive myself. Thanks anyway, Mr. Schue." Rachel turned away from him and made her way over to the door.

"Rachel?" he called after her, making Rachel stop and turn to look at him. "You can call me Will when we're alone."

His words made her heart beat just a little faster. She smiled at her teacher and nodded, before walking out the door.

Rachel had just left the choir room when she spotted Finn waiting for her at her locker. Inhaling a deep breath, she made her way down the now empty corridor towards him.

"What did Mr. Schue want?" he asked, while Rachel opened her locker and grabbed what books she would need for her homework.

Rachel shrugged. "He wanted to see how I was going."

"You guys seem pretty close," he pointed out, looking at the ground.

Rachel slammed her locker shut and turned to look at Finn. "Is there something you wanted, Finn?" she questioned, wanting to change the subject. Rachel really didn't feel comfortable discussing Mr. Schuester with her ex boyfriend.

Finn moved awkwardly. "I...I was going to ask if you wanted to go to Puck's party together?"

Rachel looked at him, confused. "But I didn't think you wanted me to go?"

"I don't," he responded, instantly. "But, if you have to go, then I'd prefer it if you at least let me take you."

"Don't you think I can take care of myself?" she snapped. "Don't you think I'm capable of going on my own?"

"No! That's not what I meant." Finn shoved his hands into his jacket pockets and moved awkwardly. "It's just that Puck's parties can get pretty crazy and I'd feel better if we went together."

"I don't need a babysitter."

"I know that."

Rachel sighed. "Fine. You can pick me up at eight on Saturday. Don't be late." She pulled her backpack onto her shoulders and started down the corridor, towards the front entrance of the school.

Finn smiled and quickly hurried after her.

Rachel had parked her car out by the road today, choosing to walk through the school yard instead of the parking lot. When Finn asked why she had chosen to park so far away from the front entrance of the school, Rachel lied and told him it was because the parking lot was full when she got there that morning. She decided it was best not to tell him that she couldn't bring herself to park in the parking lot any more, not after what happened the last time she had parked her car there. A ripple of fear passed through her when she remembered her attack.

Rachel said a quick goodbye to Finn, telling him she would see him tomorrow, before grabbing her car keys out of her bag and hurrying to her car.

-o0o-

"Why don't you tell me what happened at school this week?" the psychiatrist asked, her bright blue eyes fixed on Rachel.

Rachel shrugged her shoulders and looked down at her hands. It was Friday afternoon and she was back for her second appointment with Dr. Raine. "What do you want to know?" she questioned, voice emotionless.

"What made you decide to go back to school this week?"

Rachel looked up at the clock on the wall above the door. It had only been twenty minutes since the session started, which meant that she still had another forty minutes to go until she could leave. Sighing, she pulled her gaze back to the psychiatrist and replied, "I wanted to go back."

"You don't think it was too soon?"

"No." She shook her head.

The doctor wrote something down in her notebook. "And how did you feel when you went back there, Rachel?"

"Fine."

Dr. Raine closed her notebook and placed it on the coffee table between them. "Rachel, I know this is hard for you, but I need you to talk to me. I want to help you, but I can't if you don't open up to me and let me know how you're feeling."

"I don't need to talk to you," Rachel responded, sounding annoyed. "I don't need to be here. I'm not crazy."

"I know you're not crazy, but that doesn't mean you don't need help." Dr. Raine leaned forward in her chair, her eyes fixed on Rachel. "I want to help you, but to do that I need you to trust me."

"You can't help me," Rachel murmured, looking away from the psychiatrist. "No one can help me."

"I don't think that's true," the doctor stated, voice gentle. "I think it will take time, but I do honestly believe I can help you recover from what Jesse did to you."

Rachel flinched at the mention of Jesse's name.

Her reaction didn't go unnoticed by the doctor. "You don't like hearing his name, do you?"

Rachel could feel tears beginning to form behind her eyes. She held them back, not wanting to cry in front of this woman. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"You flinched when I said his name," the psychiatrist pointed out.

"No, I didn't." Rachel shook her head.

"It's okay," the doctor assured her. "It's normal to feel that way about your attacker."

"Can we please talk about something else?" Rachel asked, eager to change the subject.

Dr. Raine nodded. "Okay. Why don't you tell me more about the man you like? The one you mentioned in our last session." The doctor began to flip through some pages in her notebook, looking for the notes she had written the last time Rachel had been there.

Rachel stiffened. "What do you want to know about him?"

"How did you meet?"

"I can't answer that."

"Okay." The doctor nodded. "Does he like you, too?"

"Yes, I think so," Rachel shrugged. "but I don't know if he likes me in the same way that I like him."

"What makes you think that?"

"Because, I think he might only care about me because he feels like he has to."

The doctor scribbled something down on a blank page in her book. "How long have you had feelings for him?"

Rachel thought about that for a long moment, trying to pinpoint the exact moment she had developed feelings for her teacher. She remembered back to when her and Mr. Schue sang _Endless love _together in front of the Glee Club. That was when she had developed her silly little schoolgirl crush on him. Rachel still couldn't believe she had spent a whole week acting like some kind of crazy stalker, fighting for Mr. Schue's attention. She had acted like such an idiot.

But, things were different now. The feelings she now felt for Mr. Schue were much stronger than what she had felt for him back then. Back then, she had been mesmerized by his good looks and his great voice, so much so that she thought she was in love with him. But, in reality, it was nothing more than a silly little crush, something that most girls went through whenever they had a young, good looking teacher.

But now it was more than that. Now she had gotten to know him on a deeper, more intimate level. She now knew things about him that very few people ever did. For instance, she knew that he liked to be kissed on the neck, just below his ear. She knew that if you said his name during lovemaking it would cause his whole body to shiver and he would hold you just a little tighter. She knew that he had a small scar on his stomach, and a freckle on his chest. She knew that he talked in his sleep. She knew that when he held you it made you feel safe and warm, it made you wish he would hold onto you forever, because there was nothing better than the feeling of being in his arms.

"Not long," Rachel responded, pulling herself from her thoughts. "I've always liked him, but we've grown closer the last couple of months."

The doctor continued to study Rachel intently. "And is he aware of what you've been through?"

"Yes." She nodded. "He knows about my attack."

"And you think he only cares about you because he feels sorry for you. Is that correct?"

Rachel swallowed the dry lump in her throat and shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe? He didn't want anything to do with me before I was attacked; he told me I was too young and we couldn't be together because it was inappropriate, but now..." Rachel drifted off.

"Now?" the doctor prodded.

"He's different. He's not as distant towards me as he used to be. He doesn't push me away like he did before, and he seems to really care about me. I just don't know if he cares about me because he pities me, or because he has feelings for me."

"And how does that make you feel?" Dr. Raine questioned.

Rachel sighed. "I don't know. Part of me hopes he has feelings for me, but the other part of me kind of hopes he doesn't."

"And why is that?"

"Because, I'm not sure if I want him to want me any more."

"But wouldn't it make you happy if he wanted to be with you?"

"I don't know if I could ever be happy again," Rachel confessed, voice broken. "He deserves better than me." She pulled her eyes away from the doctor and looked down at the timber floorboards beneath her feet. "He deserves someone who isn't broken and scarred."

"Rachel, do you honestly think that you're broken and scarred?"

She was beginning to grow uncomfortable with the direction their conversation was going. "I don't want to talk about that." She moved uncomfortably in her chair.

"That's fine." Dr. Raine smiled warmly and closed her notebook. "I think we've done enough for today anyway. I'd like to see you again on Tuesday, if that suits you?"

"Okay." Rachel quickly got to her feet and grabbed her bag off the floor next to her chair. Without saying another word, she spun around and started towards the door.

"Oh, and Rachel?" the psychiatrist called, forcing Rachel to stop. "You are going to be okay. I know things seem hard right now, but I know you are going to get through this."

Rachel turned to look at the doctor and before she could stop herself she asked, "How can you be so sure?"

Dr. Raine placed her notebook and pen down on the table in front of her and got to her feet. "I can tell you're a strong woman, Rachel. I think with time and patience you'll recover from what happened and be able to live a relatively normal life."

Rachel turned away from the psychiatrist, inhaled a deep breath and opened the door. "I hope you're right," she murmured, before stepping out of the room and pulling the door shut behind her.

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_AN 2: I've started the next chapter which is going to be focused on Puck's party. I've written about half the chapter already so it shouldn't take me too long to have it finished (fingers crossed!)_

_So, what did we think of chapter seven? I know things are moving a little slowly and not much happened in this chapter...there hasn't been much Will/Rachel fluff for a while and I'm sorry...I promise there will be lots more of them in future chapters! Who knows, Mr. Schuester might even make an appearance in the next one? ;)_

_Anyways if you could please take the time to click the review button and lemme know your thoughts, I'd be forever grateful. Your reviews help keep me motivated on writing, so the more reviews I get the more I want to write, true story! :)  
_

_xox_


	8. Chapter 8

_A/N: A huge thanks to Coconutters for listening to all my ranting and raving about this chapter and giving me some much needed advice, she is just so amazing! And if it wasn't for her I probably would have deleted half of this chapter weeks ago! Thanks honey xox_**  
**

**Disclaimer: All rights to Glee belong to Ryan Murphy and FOX! **

**Chapter eight- Puck's Party. **

It was Saturday night and Rachel was in her room getting ready for Noah's party. She had spent the past hour going through her clothes, trying to find something appropriate to wear. In the end she had finally settled on a pair of black skinny jeans, a dark red sweater and a pair of knee high boots her dad's had given her for Christmas last year.

Normally, Rachel would have chosen to wear one of her favorite skirts with a knitted animal sweater to match, but since her attack she hadn't felt comfortable dressing in her usual clothes. Her old dresses and bright sweaters were just another horrible reminder of how much she had changed. Rachel had worn those clothes because they were different and unique and because she wanted to attract attention to herself. But that was the last thing she wanted now. Now, Rachel wanted nothing more than to be as invisible as possible.

When she had finished getting dressed, Rachel pulled her hair back into a low ponytail, put on some make up to help hide the bruises on her face, and then made her way downstairs to wait for Finn.

Most Saturday nights Rachel's dads would go out on date night. Tonight they had gone to see a movie, and they wouldn't be home for at least another hour. Before they had left, Rachel had lied and told them she was going to Mercedes house for a girls only slumber party. Rachel hated lying to them, but there was no way she could tell them the truth. Rachel knew, without a doubt in the world, that her dads would never allow her to go to Noah's party, and she wasn't going to let her parents get in the way of her plans.

Finn arrived right on time. He parked outside Rachel's house and sounded the horn to let her know that he was waiting. Rachel wasted no time grabbing her purse and making her way out to meet him. After making sure the house was locked, she hurried over to Finn's car and quickly climbed into the passenger seat.

"Hey!" she greeted, plastering a huge smile on her face.

"Hey, Rach!" Finn smiled at her and waited for Rachel to get her seat belt on, before starting the car and pulling onto the road. "You look really pretty tonight," he told her, watching the road ahead.

His words made her blush. She smiled shyly and looked down at her hands. "Thanks."

They spent the drive across town in a comfortable silence. When they arrived at Puck's house, Finn parked the car across the street and turned the engine off. Loud music, laughter and ear piercing screams could be heard from inside the house, and Rachel was shocked to see a teenage boy, not much older than herself, stumble out the front door and down the porch steps. She watched with wide eyes as he staggered across the front lawn, before tripping over and landing flat on his face, passing out on the grass in front of Puck's house.

"Isn't it a little early to be that drunk?" Rachel questioned, astonished.

Finn shrugged. "I'm willing to bet he's not the only one who's that drunk." He pulled his gaze away from the boy on the front lawn, and turned to look at Rachel. "Are you sure you still want to do this? I can take you home if you would prefer?" he asked, hoping she might have changed her mind.

Rachel smiled and shook her head. "No, I don't want to go home." She removed her seat belt, grabbed her purse and turned to open her door. "Let's go!"

After making sure the car was locked, Finn lead Rachel across the street, towards the house. When they made it to the front door, Finn rung the doorbell and they waited for someone to let them in.

A blonde girl, wearing nothing but a short, denim skirt and a red bikini top, opened the door, greeting them with a huge smile. Rachel could smell the alcohol on her breath and she couldn't help but notice her bikini top had slipped down a little too far, giving Rachel a view she would have preferred not to see.

"Hello! Welcome to the party!" The girl winked and giggled at Finn, before stepping to the side and gesturing for them to enter. "Come in and join the fun!" Rachel pulled her gaze away from the drunk girl and walked into the house "The drinks are in that room over there." The blonde pointed to a door on the other side of the room. "Help yourself!" And then she disappeared into the crowd of people, leaving Rachel and Finn standing in the doorway.

As soon as they had stepped into the over crowded living room, Finn and Rachel were instantly hit by the strong smell of cigarette smoke, beer and sweat. Rachel looked around the room, taking everything in. She couldn't believe how many people were here. The living room was filled with teenagers and young adults, most of them wasted and too young to be drinking alcohol. Loud music filled the room, making it impossible to hear anything else.

Rachel stiffened when she felt someone place their hand on the small of her back, but she instantly relaxed when she realized that it was only Finn. She smiled tentatively at him and stepped closer so he could hear her over the music. "Let's go get something to drink." Not waiting for a response, she grabbed his arm and tugged him across the room, through the crowd of people, towards the door the drunk girl had pointed out only a moment ago. Rachel pushed the door open and they walked into a small, crowded kitchen.

"Are you sure you should be drinking, Rachel?" Finn questioned, watching the young brunette with cautious eyes.

Rachel shrugged and went over to get them both a plastic cup. There was a beer keg sitting on the table, and she didn't think before filling both the cups and handing one to Finn. "Why don't you stop worrying so much and enjoy yourself?" She lifted the cup to her lips and took a small sip. It tasted horrible. Rachel screwed her face up in disgust and forced herself to swallow the contents in her mouth.

Finn shook his head and sat his cup down on the table. "No, I can't drink; I'm driving, remember?"

Rachel lifted her cup to her nose to smell the alcohol. She screwed her face up in distaste and wondered how on earth people could stand to drink something that tasted like this.

It was at that moment when the kitchen door flew open and Noah stumbled into the room with the same girl that had greeted them at the door. She was hanging off of his arm, giggling playfully.

Puck looked surprised to see Finn and Rachel. "Hey guys!" he yelled, pushing the young blonde away. He grabbed the cup Finn had just put down and took a large drink. "Good to see you guys could make it!"

Rachel smiled brightly at Puck and forced herself to have another drink from her beer. "Great party, Noah!"

"It's okay." Puck Shrugged.

Rachel watched as the drunk girl that had just been flirting with Puck, stumbled over to Finn and wrapped her arms around his waist. She looked up at him and smiled brightly. "You're so tall!" she giggled. "And sexy!"

Finn laughed awkwardly and gently pushed the blonde away. "Rachel, why don't we go outside and get some fresh air?" he suggested, stepping away from the girl. Rachel nodded and Puck excused himself to go and talk to a group of boys Rachel recognized from her algebra class.

Finn lead Rachel outside and she was surprised to see that there was an even bigger crowd of people in the backyard. She recognized a couple of senior kids from school, but she had never met them before. The music wasn't quite as loud out here, but it was still hard to hear anything other than the heavy bass. Finn directed Rachel over to a couple of vacant chairs on the left side of the yard. There was a pool not far from the sitting area, and Rachel was shocked to see a few drunk teenagers swimming naked in the water.

They sat down and she instantly took another drink from her beer, trying her hardest not to screw her nose up at the taste. She smiled at Finn and relaxed back into the chair. Rachel took a moment to look around at her surroundings, taking everything in. She had never been to a party like this before, and she would be lying if she didn't admit that this was not what she had expected.

"How are you feeling?" Finn asked, talking loudly so she could hear him over the music.

"I'm fine! Isn't this great?" She grinned at him and then proceeded to drink what was left in her cup. "Actually, I think I might go get myself another drink, do you want one?" Rachel went to get up, but Finn reached out and grabbed her arm, stopping her from going.

"Rachel, I think one is enough. You don't want to get drunk, do you?"

Rachel looked at him and shrugged. The beer had left her feeling warm and fuzzy. In fact, she was beginning to feel better than she had done in ages. That emptiness in her chest didn't feel quite as empty any more, and her whole body felt as though it was on fire. Maybe beer wasn't so bad after all?

"It's a party, Finn." Rachel rolled her eyes. "People come here to drink."

Finn sighed. "Well, maybe you should at least wait a little while before you have another one?"

It was at that moment when Santana and Brittany made their way over to where they were seated. Both the girls were dressed in matching red dresses. They looked really pretty and Rachel couldn't help but feel a little under dressed.

"Hey guys!" Santana greeted. "We were just about to go dance, do you want to come?"

Rachel didn't think before nodding her head and quickly jumping to her feet. "Sounds like fun," she replied, enthusiastically.

"What about you Finn?" Brittany asked, looking at the young footballer. "Do you feel like dancing too?"

Finn shook his head and continued to watch Rachel, his eyes filled with concern. "No thanks."

Santana shrugged. "Suit yourself."

The three girls made their way inside the house to where a large crowd of people were dancing in the living room. Santana and Brittany started to dance together in the middle of the crowd. Rachel watched in surprise as the two cheerleaders began to move and grind against each other in a rather suggestive way. Feeling a little awkward and unsure of what exactly she should do, Rachel slowly started to sway in time to the music, trying her best to fit in with everyone else.

After a few minutes Rachel started to feel uncomfortable. Being in the middle of such a large crowd was beginning to have an affect on her. Her whole body stiffened with dread as someone accidentally shoved her from behind, pushing her into a group of drunk teenage girls. Rachel went rigid with fear and her breathing hitched. She quickly retreated away from them, needing some space.

She was beginning to panic. Rachel was finding it almost impossible to breathe and her head felt as though it was pounding in time with the music. A horrible feeling of unease had settled in the pit of her stomach and her heart was racing inside her ribcage, beating so fast she thought it might stop.

Not thinking, Rachel went over to Santana and tapped her on the shoulder. "I'm going to go get another drink!" She was forced to yell over the loud music. "I'll be back in a minute, okay?" Not waiting for a response, Rachel turned away from Santana and pushed through the crowd, towards the kitchen on the other side of the room.

The kitchen was crowded, but it wasn't as bad as the living room. Rachel instantly relaxed once she was away from the other dancers and quickly went over to get herself another drink. Grabbing a cup off the table, she filled it with beer and took a long drink. The alcohol seemed to give her an instant rush of warmth, helping to calm her down almost completely. After a moment her heart rate began to settle and she was able to breathe properly again.

Finn walked into the kitchen only a second later. "You okay, Rach?" he asked, voice filled with concern.

Rachel looked up at him and nodded. "I'm great!" She smiled brightly and took another sip from her cup. "You don't need to worry about me, Finn."

Ignoring her, he grabbed the almost empty cup from her hand and sat it down on the table behind him. "I don't think you should be drinking," he told her, sounding more like her dad than her friend. "I don't want you to do anything you might regret, Rachel."

Rachel was only on her second drink, but already she could feel the effect the alcohol was having over her. She wasn't drunk yet, but the warm buzz in the back of her mind was making her feel more alive than ever. She wondered why she had never had alcohol before...it was amazing!

"Why don't you stop worrying so much?" she asked him, rolling her eyes. "You're not my babysitter, Finn."

He sighed. "I know I'm not your babysitter, but I am your friend and as your friend it's my duty to make sure you don't do anything stupid."

Rachel ignored his comment and reached past him to grab her drink off the table. "You need to relax and stop being so uptight," she told him, downing what was left of her beer. "I'm going to go find Brittany and Santana." Without another word, she turned away from Finn and walked out of the kitchen, back into the living room.

Rachel was surprised to see that Brittany and Santana were no longer dancing. Instead, they sitting around a small, crowded coffee table with a bunch of other people Rachel recognized from school. Santana was filling some shot glasses with alcohol and was eagerly handing them out to anyone who wanted one.

Without thinking, Rachel hurried over and knelt down on the carpet between Santana and Brittany. "What are you doing?"

"Tequila shots," Santana replied, pushing a shot glass in front of Rachel.

"What am I supposed to do with this?"

Santana didn't respond before yelling for everyone to drink. Rachel watched as all the people at the table grabbed their glasses and downed the tequila in one quick motion. Eager to follow suit, Rachel picked her glass up and brought it to her lips. She closed her eyes and without thinking she drank the alcohol as fast as she could. The drink was strong and tasted foul, and it seemed to burn the back of Rachel's throat as it went down. She coughed and covered her mouth with her hand, screwing her nose up at the horrible taste it left in her mouth.

"No, not like that!" Santana yelled in her ear. "Here, let me show you." She grabbed the bottle of tequila and filled both their glasses again. Rachel watched as Santana took one of the shot glasses, tossed her head back and quickly downed the tequila. Hesitating for only a second, Rachel picked up her shot and quickly drank it, doing her best to mimic Santana. Once again the tequila burned the back of her throat, making Rachel cough and screw her face up in revulsion.

After that, everything else happened in a blur. Santana and Brittany talked Rachel into having a third shot, and three shots soon turned into five, and before Rachel knew it they were drinking tequila straight from the bottle while dancing together on the top of the coffee table.

Rachel felt great. The drink had her buzzing with happiness and her whole body felt as though it was on fire. She was feeling better than she had done in a long time. The alcohol had helped to take away almost all of her pain, leaving behind a much happier, carefree version of herself.

It didn't take Finn long to try and ruin Rachel's fun. Pushing through the crowd of people, he made his way over to them and gently tugged Rachel off the table and onto the ground. Rachel stumbled and almost fell over in the process, causing Finn to quickly grab her waist to help keep her steady.

"Rachel, what the hell are you doing?" he asked, furious. "How much have you had to drink?"

"You worry too much!" she told him, a giggle falling from her lips. "Why don't you stop being so uptight and enjoy yourself?" Her words came out slurred together thanks to the alcohol.

Finn narrowed his eyes and grabbed the now empty bottle of tequila out of Brittany's hand. "How much of this have you had?" he asked, gesturing to the bottle.

Rachel shrugged. "Why are you being like this?" She looked up at him and blinked a few times, trying to focus. "Stop trying to ruin all my fun!"

Finn's eyes hardened and he said nothing else before taking hold of Rachel's hand and turning towards the door. "Come on," he yelled. "I'm taking you home!"

"No!" Rachel shook her head and quickly ripped her hand free from his grasp, causing her to stumble backwards. "I'm not ready to leave yet!"

He spun around to face her. "Rachel, you've had way too much to drink. Let's go home before you do something you might regret."

"I'm not going anywhere with you!" she snapped, her voice filled with frustration.

"Excuse me." An older boy Rachel had never seen before came to stand beside them, interrupting their conversation. "Is this man bothering you?"

"No!" Finn shook his head.

"Actually...he is," Rachel responded, not thinking clearly at all.

"Rachel!" Finn looked mortified.

"I think you better leave her alone, dude." The older boy, who looked to be around twenty years old, took a step closer to Finn. "She doesn't want anything to do with you."

Finn's eyes widened and he looked at Rachel in shock. "Rachel, can you please explain to this guy that everything's okay?"

Rachel was finding it almost impossible to stay focused on what was happening. She looked between Finn and the stranger in confusion, trying to comprehend what was going on.

"I think you better leave," the boy warned, his eyes fixed on Finn.

Finn really didn't want to cause a scene. "She's my friend," he said, taking a few steps back. "I'm only trying to help her!"

"Just leave her alone, okay?"

Finn didn't get a chance to say anything else before the older boy placed his hand on Rachel's back and guided her away, putting an end to their conversation.

Rachel wasn't 100% sure what was happening. Her brain felt as though it was disconnected from the rest of her body and she had no control over any of her actions. She followed the boy, who's name she didn't know, away from Finn and into the crowd of dancers in the middle of the living room.

"You okay, babe?" the boy asked, turning to look at her.

Rachel looked up at him and once again she tried to focus on what was happening. "I think I need another drink," she said, voice slurred.

"Wait here and I'll go get you some beer!" He smiled at Rachel, before leaving her to get a drink from the kitchen. While she waited for him to return, Rachel started to sway in time with the music. She wondered where Finn had gone, but didn't think about it too much. She was here to have fun. Finn could take care of himself.

It didn't take the boy long to come back with two cups filled with beer. He handed one to Rachel and they both had a drink while they started dancing together in the middle of the crowded room. He asked Rachel a few questions, but she was too drunk to fully comprehend anything he was saying. She smiled at him and nodded while continuing to sip her drink and sway in time to the music.

When Rachel finished her beer, she sat her empty cup down and turned to look at the boy. "I'm going to find my friends," she told him, eager to find Santana and Brittany. Without thinking, Rachel turned away from him and started pushing her way through the crowd of dancers, unsure of exactly where she was going.

To Rachel's surprise, the boy reached out and grabbed her arm, stopping her from going anywhere. "Wait! Don't go yet!" He pulled her back to him and wrapped both his arms around her waist, holding her tightly. "Dance with me."

Rachel's whole body stiffened in shock. "Please let me go." She tried to pull herself free from his grip.

"Not yet. I want to dance with you first." He spun her around so she was facing him. "Just relax, babe."

Rachel's whole body went rigid with fear. Her breathing turned ragged and her heart instantly began to race. Suddenly, she was back inside the warehouse and Jesse was holding her down, forcing himself onto her. A rush of panic and terror ran down her spine and she could feel a thin layer of sweat forming along her hairline. She needed to get away from him. She needed to get out of there before he could hurt her again.

"Let me go!" She thrashed around in his arms, hitting her fists against his chest as she did so. Finally the grip around her loosened and she was able to squirm away. Rachel didn't think twice before quickly fleeing from her attacker. Pushing through the crowd of people, she ran out of the living room and down an empty hallway.

She came to a bathroom at the end of the hall and quickly let herself inside. Closing the door, Rachel hurried over to the toilet and fell to her knees on the tiled floor. She made it just in time to lean over the porcelain bowl and throw up. Her head spun and her stomach turned violently as she coughed and heaved into the toilet.

Meanwhile, Quinn had just pulled up outside Puck's house after spending the evening studying with Mercedes. To say she was mortified to see what had gone on while she'd been gone was a huge understatement. Quinn couldn't believe Puck had actually planned a house party while his mom was out of town! What the hell was wrong with him? Determined to give the father of her unborn child a piece of her mind, Quinn hurried to get out of her car. She was seeing red as she made her way across the front lawn, up the porch steps and into the house. As she walked into the overcrowded living room, Quinn was instantly hit by the horrible stench of beer and cigarette smoke, the smell causing her already tender stomach to turn uncomfortably.

Standing in the middle of the living room, Quinn looked at the scene in front of her with wide eyes. To say she was shocked that Puck had done this was a huge understatement. It was moments like this that Quinn realized giving her baby up for adoption was the right decision. How could she trust Puck to take care of her child when he couldn't even take care of himself?

Her thoughts were interrupted by a very upset Finn. "Quinn!" he called, pushing his way though the crowd of under age drinkers. "Thank god you're here! I really need your help!"

Quinn folded her arms over her chest and narrowed her eyes at Finn. "What the hell is going on here?" she asked, voice cold and clipped "Why didn't anyone tell me that Puck was planning a party this weekend?"

"I don't have time to explain, but I really need you to help me look for Rachel." Finn ran a hand through his hair and inhaled a deep, shaky breath. "She's been drinking and I think I might have lost her."

Her eyes widened in surprise. "What is Rachel doing at a party like this, and why on earth would you let her drink?"

"She wanted to come. I tried to talk her out of it, but she wouldn't listen to me!" He sighed in frustration. "That's not important right now. All that matters is that we find Rachel before she does something stupid."

Quinn was having trouble trying to process what was happening. "When did you last see her?"

"About ten minutes ago. She was drinking and dancing with some guy, I don't know his name, but that was a while ago and I haven't seen her since then."

"Okay." Quinn nodded and chewed on her bottom lip. "We should split up and search for her. You check upstairs in case Rachel went up there, and I'll look downstairs. Let me know if you find her."

Finn nodded and without another word they both split up to start their search. Quinn pushed her way through the crowd of people, glancing around for Rachel as she went. First she checked the kitchen and the laundry room, before making her way down the hallway. Quinn went inside every room, calling Rachel's name as she went.

It wasn't until she came to the bathroom at the end of the hall, that she heard the sound of someone sobbing on the other side of the bathroom door. Stopping in front of the closed door, Quinn raised her hand and knocked gently. "Rachel? Are you in there?"

No response.

"I'm going to come in, okay?"

Another sob sounded from inside the bathroom and Quinn didn't hesitate before turning the knob and slowly pushing the door open. Walking into the bathroom, the first thing she noticed was how terrible Rachel looked. The young brunette was curled up in the corner of the room, her whole body visibly shaking. Rachel's mascara was running down her cheeks and her eyes were filled with tears. Stepping into the bathroom, Quinn quietly closed the door and made her way over to where Rachel was sitting.

"Are you okay, Rachel?" It was a stupid question to ask. Quinn could see that Rachel was definitely not okay. "What happened?" she asked, kneeling down next to the brunette.

Rachel continued to tremble as more tears fell from her eyes. "He came back," she murmured, voice filled with nothing but fear.

Quinn placed her hand on Rachel's back, trying to comfort her. "Who came back?" she asked, keeping her voice soft and gentle.

"Jesse. He was here tonight."

"That's not possible," she replied, gently stroking her back. "Jesse's dead."

"But he was here!" Rachel's voice was filled with frustration. She looked up at Quinn, her eyes wide with fright. "He grabbed me and he wouldn't let me go!"

Quinn could see that she was beginning to get worked up, and she knew that she needed to try and calm Rachel down before she had a panic attack. It was obvious that Rachel had had too much to drink, and as a result she was beginning to grow agitated and even more upset than usual.

"It's okay, Rachel," she soothed. "He can't hurt you now, I promise."

"I haven't gone crazy," Rachel whispered, her voice slurred from all the alcohol she'd had to drink. "He was here!"

"I know you're not crazy," Quinn assured her. "You're going to be okay, Rachel. I promise Jesse wont hurt you again." She offered Rachel a comforting smile, before reaching into her jacket pocket and pulling out her cell phone. She sent Finn a quick message, letting him know that Rachel had been found, before putting her phone away and turning her attention back to Rachel.

"I'm going to go and get you a glass of water, okay?"

Quinn went to move, but Rachel quickly grabbed hold of her, preventing her from leaving. "Please don't go!" she begged, looking up at Quinn with wide, tear filled eyes. "I don't want to be alone!"

"Okay." Quinn nodded and slowly sat back down. "Don't worry, I wont go anywhere."

Finn hurried into the bathroom a short while later, surprised to find Quinn sitting with Rachel on the bathroom floor. Rachel had her head on Quinn's shoulder, her eyes filled with tears and her body trembling.

"Are you okay, Rachel?" he asked, kneeling down beside them.

Rachel closed her eyes as another tear slowly rolled down her cheek.

"I think we need to call her dads to come and pick her up," Quinn said, looking up at Finn.

"No!" Rachel snapped. "Please don't call them! I don't want my dads to know I'm here!" She looked between Finn and Quinn with wide, frightened eyes. "Please don't tell them I'm here!"

"Okay." Quinn nodded. "Don't worry, we wont call them."

Rachel relaxed.

"What are we supposed to do?" Finn asked, trying to keep his voice as soft and gentle as possible. "We can't leave her here like this."

"I don't know." Quinn continued stroking Rachel's back, trying to keep her calm. "Maybe you could take her back to your house?" Quinn suggested, unsure of what else they could do.

Finn looked down at Rachel and was surprised to see that she'd passed out. Rachel looked much more peaceful now she was asleep. He reached out and gently tucked a stray strand of her hair back behind her ear, allowing his fingers to stroke her cheek as he did so.

"I think I might have a better idea."

-o0o-

Will was seated on his lounge, grading a pile of Spanish tests his students had done earlier in the week. He had almost finished marking the papers and was really looking forward to getting them done so he could go to bed. It had been a busy week at school and as a result he was completely exhausted. Will could feel his eyes getting heavy and if it wasn't for the two cups of coffee he had consumed earlier he probably would have fallen asleep hours ago.

When he had finally finished marking the last test, Will quickly stuffed the papers into his briefcase and packed away all his things. He made sure all the lights in his apartment were turned off, and the front door was locked, before making his way up the hallway and into his room to get ready for bed. It didn't take him long to get changed into some sleep clothes and use the bathroom. After brushing his teeth and using the toilet, he flicked the bedroom light off and crawled into his warm, comfortable bed.

That was when his phone rang.

Will quickly sat upright and turned to look at the digital clock on the night stand beside him. It was almost midnight and he couldn't help but wonder who on earth would be calling him so late. Scolding himself for leaving his phone in the living room, Will staggered to his feet and hurried to answer it before the call went to voice mail. He ran through his dark apartment, flicking the living room light on as he went.

He found his phone on the coffee table and wasted no time racing over to answer it.

"Hello?"

"_Mr. Schue,_" Finn's familiar voice sounded on the other end of the receiver, surprising Will more than anything. For a second Will wondered how his student had got his number, but then he remembered that he'd given it to him back when Finn had been having issues with Quinn, just in case he ever needed someone to talk to.

"Finn?" he questioned, confused. "Is everything okay?"

"_I'm sorry for calling you so late, Mr. Schue,_ " the young footballer apologized.

"It's fine," Will assured him, running a hand through his hair. "Is something wrong?"

Finn didn't respond straight away. Will could hear what sounded like music playing from the other end of the phone and he thought he heard a female voice talking faintly in the background, but he couldn't make out what they were saying.

And then Finn whispered two words that made Will's heart come to a complete stop.

"_It's Rachel._.."

* * *

**A/N: So sorry that I left it there! I had plans to write more, but it just didn't happen!**

**So, what did we think of Puck's party? I hope it was okay! I've never written anything like this before...my apologies if it wasn't very good!**


	9. Chapter 9

_Last Chapter:_

_Finn didn't respond straight away. Will could hear what sounded like music playing from the other end of the phone and he thought he heard a female voice talking faintly in the background, but he couldn't make out what they were saying._

_And then Finn whispered two words that made Will's heart come to a complete stop._

_"It's Rachel..."_

* * *

Will parked his car outside Puck's house and turned the engine off. He looked at the scene in front of him with wide, shocked eyes. Puck's front yard was filled with drunk teenagers, most of them he recognized from his classes at school. They were all drinking and dancing to the music that was playing from inside the house and Will was shocked to see that a few of them had even passed out on the front lawn.

He didn't waste any time getting out of his car and quickly hurrying across the front lawn. Pushing his way through the crowd of under age drinkers, Will made his way up the porch steps and through the front door. Walking into the crowded living room, he was surprised to see how many people were here. Young kids, most of them no older than seventeen, were drinking and dancing to the loud music.

"Hey Mr. Sexy," a young blonde Will recognized from his senior Spanish class greeted him as he walked through the door. She was dressed in nothing but a short denim skirt and a red bikini top that did nothing to cover her up. Will could smell the alcohol on her breath and he could see that she was obviously very drunk. "Wanna make out?" she asked, giggling playfully and all running her hand down the front of his shirt, her fingers playing with the buttons.

Will grabbed the young girl by the shoulders and firmly pushed her away. Feeling uncomfortable, he politely rejected her advances and quickly started to make his way through the crowd of dancers, eager to find Rachel and get her out of there as quickly as possible.

Thankfully, Finn managed to find him only a minute later. "Mr. Schue!" he called, pushing his way through the crowd towards his teacher.

"Where's Rachel?" Will questioned, his voice filled with nothing but concern.

Finn gestured for Will to follow him and without saying a word they made their way through the crowded room and down an empty hallway at the back of the house. Walking into a small bathroom only a moment later, Will was shocked to see the state Rachel was in. She had passed out on the bathroom floor, her head in Quinn's lap. She looked absolutely terrible.

Without hesitating, Will quickly rushed to her side, kneeling down on the floor in front of her. "Rachel?" he murmured, running his hand over her flushed cheek. "Sweetheart, can you open your eyes?"

"I'm sorry, Mr. Schue," Finn whispered, still standing in the doorway of the bathroom. "I tried to talk her out of coming tonight, but she wouldn't listen to me." His voice was filled with both regret and guilt.

"Well you should have tried harder," Will replied, disappointed in Finn for letting Rachel get herself into this position.

"I know," Finn agreed, running a hand through his hair. "I'm sorry."

Will wasn't interested in hearing Finn's apology. "Rachel, I'm going to pick you up, okay?" he spoke quietly in her ear, not wanting to startle her. Rachel mumbled something in response but she didn't open her eyes. Will moved closer to her and, being as gentle as he could, he slid his arms under her body and lifted her off the bathroom floor.

"She thought she saw Jesse." Quinn finally spoke up, looking up at her teacher with red, tear filled eyes. "She was so scared." A single tear rolled down the blonde's cheek, landing on the front of her white dress. "I've never seen her so frightened before."

"I'll take care of her," Will promised, meeting Quinn's gaze. "She'll be okay."

His grip around Rachel tightened as he turned to leave the bathroom. Finn quickly stepped out of his teachers way, letting him get past. Not saying anything else, Will carried Rachel out of the crowded bathroom and through the rest of the house, eager to get her out of there as soon as possible.

She stirred in his arms as they were making their way through the front door. She opened her eyes and looked up at her teacher, confused and disorientated. "Mr. Schuester?" Rachel asked, voice slurred. "Is that you?" She blinked a few times, trying to comprehend what she was seeing.

He smiled at her. "You're going to be okay, Rach."

She closed her eyes again and buried her face in the crock of his neck. Snaking her arms around his shoulders, she pulled herself closer to him. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

His grip around her tightened. "It's fine, Rach. Everything's okay."

It didn't take Will long to unlock his car and put Rachel in the passenger seat. Once he had her buckled in, he closed her door and went around to get in the drivers side.

"Where are you taking me?" Rachel asked, once Will was in beside her.

Starting the car, Will turned to look at the drunk girl next to him. Rachel had her eyes closed and her head propped up against the window beside her. "I thought I'd take you back to my place," he replied, voice soft and gentle. "You can have my spare bed tonight and I'll drive you home in the morning."

"You're taking me t-to your house?" Rachel slowly lifted her head and turned to look at Will. She blinked a few times, trying her hardest to stay focused. "I...you don't have to do that," she said, her words slurred.

Will offered her a kind smile and shook his head. "It's no trouble at all," he assured her. "Unless you would rather I took you home?"

"No, I-I don't want to go home." Rachel closed her eyes and rested her head back against the window, a sigh falling from her dry lips. "I d-don't want my dad's to see me like this," she mumbled.

The next time Rachel opened her eyes the car was moving and her stomach was turning violently.

"Pull over." she sat up straight in the seat, covering her mouth with both her hands. "I-I think I'm going to be sick." Rachel held her breath, praying she wouldn't throw up all through Will's car.

In less than a second Will had pulled the car over to the side of the road. He quickly helped Rachel remove her seat belt and leaned over to open her door, just in time for the young brunette to scramble out of her seat. Bending over only a few feet from the car, Rachel proceeded to throw up whatever contents her stomach had to offer.

Will was by her side only a moment later. Rachel was faintly aware of his hand on her back and his gentle voice in her ear, telling her that everything was going to be okay. Using his other hand, he gathered Rachel's hair out of her face, holding it out of the way while she was being sick.

Finally, she finished throwing up and slowly stood up straight, turning to look at her teacher. "I-I'm so sorry," she apologized, a hiccup sounding from her lips.

"It's fine." Will pulled a tissue out of his pocket and used it to wipe the corner of Rachel's mouth. "Do you think you're going to be okay to get back in the car?" he asked. "My house is only a few minutes from here."

Rachel looked up at him and nodded. "I think I'll be okay."

She managed to stay awake for the rest of the drive to Will's apartment. Pulling into the parking garage beneath his apartment building, Will switched the car off and got out, hurrying around the help Rachel out the passenger side.

After stumbling out of the car, Rachel swayed on her feet for a moment, trying to regain her balance. "I think going to Noah's party might have been a mistake," she mumbled, watching as Will locked the car. "I don't feel so good."

He smiled at the drunk girl and wrapped an arm around her waist, helping to keep her steady. "You'll feel better once you have a drink of water and get some sleep," he said, directing her over to the elevator on the other side of the parking garage.

Rachel leaned against him as they walked, finding it almost impossible to stay up straight. "I feel dizzy," she whispered, trying to keep her eyes open.

"Do you want me to carry you?" He pressed the button to call the elevator.

Rachel nodded and Will didn't hesitate before snaking an arm under her knees and gently lifting her up.

It didn't take them long to make it up to his apartment. Unlocking his front door, Will carried Rachel inside and gently placed her down on his lounge. "Wait here," he instructed, before going into the kitchen and fetching her a glass of water.

When he returned, Will knelt down on the floor in front of Rachel's knees and handed her the glass. She managed to finish all of the water in just a few gulps. "Thank you," she murmured, passing him back the now empty glass.

"I'm going to make the guest bed up for you, okay?" Rachel nodded in response before laying down on the couch. After telling her to stay put, Will got to his feet and made his way into the guest bedroom at the end of the hallway. He made sure the bed was neat and tidy with clean sheets and enough blankets, before going into his closet and finding Rachel a shirt and some sweatpants to sleep in.

The drunk brunette had passed out on the lounge when he returned only a short while later. Will walked quietly over to where she was laying and knelt down in front of her, his face only inches from hers. He resisted the sudden urge to touch her, to stroke her flushed cheek and brush his fingers through her loose hair. She looked much more peaceful when she slept. The worry lines had disappeared almost completely from around her eyes, replaced by a calm innocence that made her look more like her old self than she had done in weeks.

Deciding he didn't want to move her and wake her up, Will gently removed Rachel's boots from her feet and sat them out of the way. He grabbed the old blanket from the back of the lounge and spread it over her, making sure it covered her completely. Will disappeared into his bedroom and came back only a second later with a spare pillow and gently slid it underneath Rachel's head, moving her gently so he wouldn't disrupt her.

Once Rachel was tucked in, Will made sure the front door was locked before flicking the living room light off. He decided to keep the kitchen light on, just in case Rachel woke up during the night. After checking on her one last time, Will quietly left the room to get ready for bed.

It was almost two in the morning by the time Will had changed into his sleep clothes and finally crawled back into bed. After getting himself comfortable, he closed his eyes and sighed loudly.

He couldn't believe he'd actually brought a drunk Rachel Berry back to his house. Will knew that if anyone at school ever found out he'd allowed an intoxicated student to sleep on his lounge then he'd definitely get himself into a lot of trouble, he'd probably even risk being fired. However, the thought didn't worry him as much as it probably should have. Will couldn't bring himself to worry about school or his career when Rachel needed him to take care of her. And, if he was going to be completely honest with himself, Will liked having her here. It gave him peace of mind to know Rachel was here and she was safe.

He wouldn't let anyone hurt her.

After a few minutes Will's eyes slowly grew heavy and he was pulled into unconsciousness.

When he woke it was to the sound of Rachel crying loudly from the living room.

Will Schuester's eyes flew open and he quickly sat up straight in the bed, his heart racing hard and fast as he tried to comprehend what was happening. And then Rachel's loud, painful sobs sounded from the living room, echoing throughout his silent apartment and causing Will to stiffen in shock. He didn't think before quickly pulling his covers back and all but scrambling to get out of bed.

He found her curled up in a fetus position on the lounge, her whole body visible shaking. "Rachel?" Will spoke gently, keeping his voice soft and tentative so he wouldn't startle her. "Honey, what happened?" When he got to her, Will sank down to his knees on the floor, resisting the urge to touch her, knowing it wouldn't help.

"I had a bad dream," Rachel murmured, another painful sob falling from her throat. "I was s-so scared," she added, her voice breaking as her whole body continued to shake.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Will asked her, his voice quiet and gentle.

Rachel cried into her hands and burrowed herself even deeper into the lounge, covering her face with the blanket. "I was back inside the warehouse," she told him, her voice muffled by the blanket. "I was in the chair and I had my blindfold on. Jesse was there, he was-" Rachel's sentence was interrupted as another painful sound came from deep inside her chest.

It was the first time she'd ever spoken about what happened in the warehouse with Will, and he would be lying if her words didn't awaken something deep inside of him. He felt the pain and frustration he'd been trying to hold back as it began to surface, his whole body was consumed with the sudden, raw need to keep this girl safe, to protect her from the horrible memories that plagued her mind.

"You're safe now," he told her, his voice thick with emotion. He reached out to her, gently pulling the blanket away so he could see her face. Rachel's eyes slowly fluttered open as she looked up to meet his concerned gaze. "I'm here, Rachel. I promise I wont let anyone hurt you."

Rachel looked away from him as another tear fell from her eye, slowly trailing down the side of her face. "I hate this so much," she whispered. "I hate what he's done to me." Rachel wrapped her arms tightly around her torso, a quiet sob falling from her lips. "I hate him." Finally, she looked back up at Will, their gazes meeting in the dim room. "I hate him s-so much."

Will nodded in understanding and reached out to her, gently stroking the side of Rachel's face. "I know," he responded, his fingers gently caressing her cheek. "I hate him, too."

Rachel closed her eyes and turned her face into his hand, her nose brushing against his open palm. "Stay with me," she murmured, as more tears spilled from her eyes. "Don't leave."

"I'm not going anywhere, I promise."

"Can I sleep with you tonight?" she asked. "I-I don't want to be on my own."

Will knew he should say no. He knew that sleeping in the same bed with Rachel wasn't appropriate and if anyone ever found out then he'd get into a lot of trouble. But how could he say no to her? How could he push her away when she needed him so badly? How could he ever deny this woman what she wanted?

"Of course." Will leaned over and placed the lightest of kisses against her forehead. He took her hand in his and gently helped her to her feet. Rachel's hand clasped his tightly, as though she was frightened that he'd let her go.

He guided her up the hallway and into his room. Leading her over to his bed, Will pulled the covers back and gestured for Rachel to get in. Wanting to be more comfortable, Rachel removed her coat and her jeans before sliding under the blankets. She rolled over and watched as Will climbed in next to her, making sure to keep plenty of space between them on the mattress.

"Thank you, Will." Rachel slid over in the bed, her body almost touching his. Her hand found his underneath the covers and their fingers laced together as she held onto him tightly.

Will couldn't help but enjoy the way his name sounded on her lips. "You're welcome." Without thinking, he lifted her hand to his mouth and kissed the back of her palm.

Rachel shifted even closer so her legs were touching his and their hands were snug between her chest and his. "Is this okay?" she asked him, her voice so quiet it was almost a whisper.

He smiled and closed his eyes, enjoying the warmth of her body against his.

"It's more than okay."

-o0o-

Rachel woke up the next morning feeling terrible. She had a painful headache and her stomach turned violently, a vicious reminder of how much she'd had to drink last night. When Rachel opened her eyes, she instantly regretted it. The bright stream of sunlight that shone through the bedroom window did nothing to help her headache. Quickly closing her eyes again, Rachel pulled the covers over her head, shielding her face from the bright light.

And then the memories from the night before came rushing back to her. Rachel stiffened when she remembered the events from the previous night. Her memories were a little foggy, but she managed to piece almost everything back together. She remembered going to Noah's party and she remembered having way too much to drink. She remembered dancing with Santana and Brittany before freaking out and locking herself in the bathroom. She remembered Will coming to get her and taking her back to his house...

Will!

Rachel sat up straight in the bed, the covers falling from her face. She looked around at Will's bedroom in shock, trying to comprehend what had happened. Rachel turned her head to look at the bed next to her and she was surprised to see that Will's side of the bed was now empty. Rubbing her sleep filled eyes, Rachel squinted against the glaring sun, trying to wake herself up and comprehend everything that had happened.

Rachel couldn't believe she'd been such an idiot last night. Going to Noah's party had been a really bad idea. How was she supposed to explain herself to Will? The thought made her stomach tighten. Rachel knew that Will was going to want to discuss what had happened last night. Sighing loudly, Rachel slowly laid back down in the bed. She covered her face with both her hands and mentally scolded herself for getting into this position.

She had never felt more ashamed of herself in all her life. Rachel wondered what Will thought of her now. Was he mad with her? Did he hate her for going to the party behind his back? Would he tell her off for what she did? Rachel could only imagine how disappointed he must be. Her stomach tightened at the thought of him being angry with her and she suppressed the urge to cry.

Rachel wasn't sure how long she remained laying in bed, but after a while she decided it was time to get up and face the day. Ignoring the horrible feeling in the pit of her stomach, she tossed the blankets off and forced herself to her feet. After grabbing her clothes off the floor, Rachel quickly got dressed and made her way out the room and across the hall to use Will's bathroom.

She used the toilet before washing her face and hands. As Rachel stood at the bathroom mirror, she couldn't help noticing her reflection in the glass. Rachel looked as bad as she felt. She had dark circles under her tired eyes and the bruises on her cheeks had begun to turn a horrible shade of yellow, making her skin look even more pale and withdrawn.

Rachel didn't hesitate before leaning over and splashing some cool water on her flushed cheeks. She borrowed Will's comb to brush the tangles out of her hair, then found some mouthwash in his cupboard, using it to wash the horrible stale taste of alcohol out of her mouth.

When she left the bathroom Rachel looked and felt a little better. She found Will in the kitchen, seated at the table. He was reading the newspaper, a mug of hot coffee on the table in front of him. Rachel moved nervously in the doorway and cleared her throat, getting his attention.

He looked up instantly. "Good morning." Will smiled softly and closed the newspaper. "How are you feeling this morning?"

"Hey." She crossed her arms over her chest and looked down at the floorboards beneath her feet, suddenly feeling shy and nervous. "I'm okay," she lied. Truthfully, Rachel's head ache was getting worse and she was finding it almost impossible to keep her sore eyes open.

"How's your head feeling?" he asked, as though he could read her thoughts. Rachel watched as he got up from the table and went over to get a glass out of the cupboard, filling it with water.

Rachel rubbed her eyes. "It's been better," she replied, honestly.

Will placed the glass of water on the table and went to get some Tylenol from the medicine cabinet, sitting two tablets down next to the water. "Take those," he instructed. "They'll help your head ache."

Rachel thanked him before taking a step towards the table. She hesitated for only a moment before taking a seat across from where Will had been sitting only a moment earlier. She smiled at his thoughtfulness before taking the tablets and having a few sips from the water.

Will pushed the newspaper out of the way before grabbing his used mug and rinsing it out in the sink.

The silence between them made Rachel feel even worse. Looking down at her glass of water, she chewed her lip nervously, knowing she had to say something about what she did last night, try to apologize for being such a burden and making a complete fool of herself in front of this man. She hoped she could get him to forgive her for what she did.

"I guess we need to talk about Noah's party," she murmured, looking up at her teacher as he began to pack some clean dishes away.

He stopped what he was doing and turned to look at her, his green eyes studying her intently. Rachel moved nervously under the weight of his gaze and looked down at her hands, waiting for him to say something, to tell her how upset and disappointed he was. She swallowed the dry lump in her throat and inhaled a breath, forcing herself to look at him again.

"Do you want to get something for breakfast?" he asked her and whatever Rachel had expected him to say, that definitely wasn't it.

"Ah...what?"

"There's bakery across the street. We could eat there, if you want?" Rachel watched as he turned his back to her and washed his hands, drying them on a towel.

She looked at him with confused eyes, wondering why he wasn't yelling at her yet. Wasn't he supposed to be angry with her? "Sure," she responded, clearing her throat. "That sounds nice."

-o0o-

The bakery across the street was called Missy's Bake shop and Rachel was surprised to see how busy it was. The bell above the door chimed as Will and Rachel walked into the small, crowded store. They managed to find a quiet table towards the back of the bakery and Will kindly helped Rachel with her seat, before taking the chair opposite hers. They didn't speak as Will began to study the breakfast menu and Rachel sat in silence, taking in her surroundings.

The bakery was small and welcoming. There was a long counter on the left side of the store which held a glass cabinet filled with all kinds of pretty cakes and desserts. A young couple sat on wooden stools at the counter, talking quietly between themselves. The rest of the store was filled with small tables and huge, open windows. The fabric on the tables were dark orange in color which matched the walls and the curtains perfectly. A vase of bright sunflowers sat in the center of each table, making the bakery feel warm and inviting.

"How are you feeling?" Will asked, grabbing Rachel's attention.

She looked across at him and nodded. "I'm fine." Her headache was getting better, thanks to the Tylenol Will had given her. She was now able to keep her eyes open without getting the painful throbbing in her skull. "Do you come here often?" Rachel asked, looking around the store.

"Not as often as I used to," he replied. "When I was married to Terri we used to come here all the time."

Rachel looked away from him, her attention focusing on the orange table cloth beneath her hand. She suddenly felt a little nervous at the thought of Will bringing her to this place, the place where he used to visit with his wife. She wondered why Will would want to share this place with her. The bakery was something he had shared with the woman he had once loved, so why would he want to bring Rachel here?

He seemed to notice Rachel was growing agitated. "Is something wrong?" Will asked her, closing his menu and sitting it down on the table.

She shook her head and forced herself to look at him, a fake smile spreading so easily across her lips. "Nothing's wrong," she assured him. "What are you going to order?"

He continued to look at her for a moment before finally pulling his gaze away, looking down at the menu. "I was thinking that the pancakes sounded good. They have vegan ones too if you want to try them?"

Rachel nodded. "Sure. Pancakes sound great." Truthfully, Rachel wasn't feeling very hungry. Her stomach still felt a little tender and just the thought of food was enough to make it turn uncomfortably. But, Rachel knew she should at least try to eat something.

After only a few minutes a waitress came to take their order. They each ordered their pancakes with a glass of orange juice and watched as the young waitress quickly hurried away to get their drinks. While she was gone, Rachel turned to look out the window beside their table, watching as a young boy and his mother walked past the bakery window. The boy was laughing excitedly as he skipped beside his mother, a bright red ball crammed underneath his arm and a huge smile plastered across his face. Rachel couldn't help but envy the boy. She envied the life he had, the happiness and the innocence he still held onto. She wished she could be young again, she wished she could go back to that time in her life when she had absolutely nothing to be fearful of.

"What are you thinking about?" Will's voice pulled her out of her thoughts.

She looked away from the child, a heavy feeling in her chest. "Nothing," she replied, looking at the man sitting opposite her.

He smiled and reached across the table, covering her hand with his, an action that caused Rachel to stiffen slightly in surprise. She wasn't expecting him to hold her hand in such a public place. "I hope this is okay?" he asked, watching her intently.

Rachel nodded and looked down at their hands. "It's okay." She couldn't help but enjoy the feeling of his hand on hers, the warmth of his skin against her own. Rachel hesitated for only a second before slowly turning her hand over, their fingers threading together.

Breakfast was nice. Will and Rachel ate their meal in a comfortable silence. Rachel wasn't very hungry, but she managed to finish almost half of her food before she pushed the plate away, unable to eat another bite.

"Aren't you going to ask me about last night?" she asked, once Will had finished his own meal and the waitress had come to collect their plates.

Rachel held her breath as she watched her teacher take a drink from his juice, sitting the glass down in front of him. "I didn't think I needed to," he replied, his response surprising Rachel to no end.

Rachel narrowed her eyes and looked down, inhaling a breath. Why wasn't he angry with her? Why wasn't he telling her off for what she did last night? "I thought you'd be angry with me," she replied, her voice small and broken.

"I'm not angry," he assured her. "Going to Puck's party wasn't a great idea, but I'm sure you've learned your lesson?" he made it out to be a question.

"I have." She nodded, wrapping her hands around her glass. "Noah's party was probably the worst idea I've ever had."

"Good." He smiled.

Rachel watched him curiously, waiting for him to say something else, for him to tell her how disappointed he was. "Good?" she repeated, furrowing her brow in confusion. "I went to Noah's party behind your back," she stated. "I got so drunk that you had to drive to his house in the middle of the night to come and get me, and all you can say is good?" She sat back in her chair, crossing her arms over her chest. "Why aren't you yelling at me?"

"I don't want to yell at you," he stated. "Rachel, you've been through so much these past few weeks, nobody is going to blame you for making a few mistakes."

His words made her feel even more guilty. She couldn't believe how understanding he was being. He should be angry with her. He should hate her for what she put him through last night. Tears burned behind her eyes as she quickly looked away, focusing outside the window again.

"I thought it would change everything," she murmured, needing to explain herself. "I-I thought maybe if everyone saw me at the party then they might start to think I was normal again, they might stop looking at me like I'm some kind of damaged freak."

"Oh, Rach." He shook his head, his gaze filled with nothing but sadness. "No body looks at you like that."

"But they do," she replied, forcing back the tears. "I see it in their eyes every time I walk into school. I see it when I go to the store or walk past them in the street. The second they see me they get this look of pity in their eyes and I can almost read their thoughts. They think that I'm damaged and broken and they instantly feel sorry for me." Rachel inhaled a deep breath and looked up at Will. "I hate it, Will. All they do is remind me that I'm broken, that I'm damaged and I wont ever be normal again."

Will opened his mouth to speak but she held up her hand, signalling that she hadn't finished yet. "So that's why I went last night. I know it may seem silly but a small part of me thought that maybe going to Noah's would change everything. I thought people would start to accept me again and I thought maybe it would help me get over what happened and move on." She sighed and shook her head, her hair falling loose around her face. "But it didn't do any of those things. All I did was make a complete idiot of myself and show everyone how crazy I really am. Noah's was a really bad idea and I put myself into an awkward position that I really wasn't ready for. I see that now, and I'm sorry I acted so foolish. I promise it wont happen again."

He continued to watch her in silence for a long moment even after she'd finished talking. "I understand," he murmured, his voice so small it was almost a whisper. He gave her a wistful smile and reached across the table, his hand open for hers.

She let out the breath she'd been holding onto and hesitated for a second before placing her hand in his. She didn't need him to say anything else, just knowing that he understood her was more enough. "Thank you," she whispered, her fingers gently squeezing his.

When they were ready to leave, Will paid for their meal while Rachel went to use the bathroom. When she came back Will was waiting by their table, her coat folded neatly over his arm.

"Are you ready to go?" he asked, helping Rachel into her coat.

She nodded. "Yeah, it's getting late and I told my dads I'd be home before lunch." she sighed and looked down at her watch, surprised to see that it was almost midday. "Would you mind giving me a ride home?"

"No, not at all." Will smiled before leading her out of the bakery.

It didn't take them long to walk back to his apartment and get his car. The drive to Rachel's house was quiet, the radio playing softly in the background. When they pulled up outside her house, Rachel removed her seat belt and turned to look at Will.

"Thank you," she said, wanting him to know how grateful she was for everything he'd done for her.

"You're welcome." He gave her a warm smile.

She turned to open her door and get out of the car. Once she was out, Rachel turned to look at him."I'll see you at school tomorrow?"

"Of course."

She gave him a small wave before closing the car door and turning towards her house. She didn't look back as she made her way up the porch steps and through the front door, feeling Will's eyes on her the entire time.

For the first time in weeks Rachel felt as though she could breathe a little easier. Her talk with Will at breakfast had made her feel as though some of the weight had been lifted off her chest, giving her a chance to breathe. She felt as though there was someone she could talk to, someone she knew wouldn't judge her no matter what she told him.

-o0o-

That night Rachel received a phone call she hadn't been expecting.

She was seated at her computer desk in her room working on this weeks History assignment, when the phone on her desk started to ring, causing Rachel to jump in surprise. She decided to let one of her dads answer it, knowing it probably wasn't anyone calling for her anyway.

The phone stopped ringing and after only a minute there was a quiet knock on her bedroom door. Rachel looked up as her dad stepped into the room. "Honey, there's a call for you."

"Who is it?" she asked, laying her pen down and closing her history book.

"Quinn Fabray." He smiled at her before stepping out of the room and pulling the door shut behind him.

Quinn Fabray? Rachel furrowed her brow in confusion as she reached over to grab her phone. Why one earth would Quinn be calling her?

"Hello?"

"Hey, Rach," Quinn's voice sounded from the other end of the receiver. "I hope you don't mind me calling so late, I just wanted to see how you were doing and make sure you made it home okay."

"Oh." Rachel remembered back to the previous night and the meltdown she had in Noah's bathroom. She remembered how kind Quinn had been to her, how caring she'd been. "I'm okay," Rachel murmured, her voice barely above a whisper.

Rachel couldn't help but feel embarrassed about how she'd acted in front of the pregnant cheerleader. Her cheeks burned at the memory and once again she found herself regretting going to Noah's party.

"So you made it home okay?" Quinn asked. "Finn and I were really worried about you."

"Yeah, Mr. Schue brought me home." Rachel grabbed the phone off her desk and went over to sit on the edge of her bed. She began to twirl her finger around the phone cord as she looked down at her lap. "Thank you, Quinn," she murmured. "For everything you did last night."

"You're welcome, Rachel."

Rachel shifted nervously on the bed, unsure of what else she should say to the girl who used to be her enemy. "Well," she whispered. "I guess I should probably go. It's getting late and we've got that big calculus test tomorrow."

"Wait," Quinn said, her voice suddenly much lower. "I wanted to talk to you about something."

"Oh?" Rachel continued to play with the phone cord, twirling it around and around her index finger. "What did you want to talk about?"

"You."

Quinn's response caused Rachel's heart to instantly speed up. She stopped playing with the phone cord and sat up a little straighter. "Me?" she questioned. "Why do you want to talk about me?" Rachel didn't like the direction their conversation was going. She really didn't want to discuss herself with this girl.

"Yeah." Quinn cleared her throat. "I just wanted to let you know that I'm sorry."

"Sorry?" she repeated, confused. "Why are you sorry?"

There was a long pause of silence before Quinn said anything. "I'm sorry for the way I treated you," Quinn said, her voice only a whisper. "I've been really mean to you the past few years and I feel bad about it. I've done some really horrible things to you, things I wish I could take back."

To say that Rachel was surprised was a huge understatement. She definitely had not been expecting Quinn to apologize. "It's okay." Rachel resumed the task of twirling the phone cord around her finger, her eyes focused on the phone in her lap.

"No, it's not okay." Quinn sounded as though she was beginning to get a little worked up and Rachel couldn't help noticing how broken her voice was. She wondered if the girl on the other end of the line had started to cry. "I wouldn't blame you if you couldn't forgive me for the way I acted, I don't think I could forgive myself either."

"Quinn," Rachel suddenly felt the need to comfort the blonde, to make sure she understood that there were no hard feelings between them. "You don't have to apologize. If I remembered rightly I wasn't all that nice to you either," she paused for a second before adding, "Let's just forget about all the stuff that happened in the past, okay?"

"Okay." A quiet sob sounded from the other end of the receiver. "Thank you, Rachel."

Rachel nodded, a tear forming in the corner of her eye. "Good night, Quinn." She hesitated for a second before sitting the phone back on it's cradle. She sat in silence for a few minutes, staring at her phone and wondering if the conversation she'd just had with Quinn had been some kind of weird, delusional dream.

* * *

**So I think I owe all of you (if you're still reading this!) a huge apology! It's been forever since I updated Broken Star and for that I'm soooo sorry! I know how frustrating it is when you're halfway through reading a story and it hasn't been updated in months! I hope there are still people reading this and if so you guys rock! Thank you so much for sticking by me :)  
Anyways I promise I'm going to keep working on this and I assure you I will update a lot quicker next time! I've been working on chapter 10 so hopefully I can have it done soon! Also, keep an eye out for another story I'm working on which I'm not going to put up on this site until I've finished it, which will hopefully be soon!**

oh and if you could please leave me a little review to let me know what you thought of this I would be forever grateful :)

Much love! x


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